“These Are Small Things”: Dominic Thiem’s Father Plays Down His Foot Problem

Austrian tennis star Dominic Thiem’s father played down concerns around his foot problem. The reigning US Open champion ran up a sequence of losses in recent tournaments, raising question marks on his fitness and form.

Dominic Thiem’s recent run of losses have raised question marks about his form and fitness

He went out in the fourth round of this year’s Australian Open after falling to an uncharacteristically tame defeat to Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov.

That the loss followed a heroic comeback win in the third-round clash with homeboy Nick Kyrgios made it all the more strange. Thiem followed up his Australian Open ouster with early exits in Doha and Dubai.

Acknowledging the run of underwhelming performances, he conceded to going through a rough phase in his career.

The current World Number 4 fed fears around his fitness even more by making repeated references to a foot problem in the recent past.

Dominic Thiem’s father plays down injury concerns

However, speaking to Kleine Zeitung, his father Wolfgang sought to dispel worries saying he developed the foot problem by sliding on hard courts and should be okay with proper management of the issue.

“These are small things that just happen again and again when Dominic plays on hard court,” Wofgang said.

Assuring all Thiem fans that his son is “doing well”, he added that the Austrian’s medical team is merely in the process of checking a “few things”.

“Everyone has their weak point. But it’s nothing serious, otherwise it’d also hurt if he didn’t put any weight on the foot,” Thiem’s father reasoned.

An able retriever with one of the best defensive games in the men’s circuit, Thiem does have a penchant to slide on hard courts, his father said.

“A callus develops over the years – and if this area is heavily stressed, irritation can arise,” Wolfgang, also a tennis coach, explained.

However, he asserted that there is no fear of the problem aggravating into any long-term injury.

Read More: Dominic Thiem Unfolds the Curtains About the Number of Hours He Trains On Court

The Austrian is among the many top players missing from the men’s draw at the prestigious Miami Open this year.