The 2nd semi-final in the men’s section has come to an end and it is now 2 just players remaining to have a shot at the 2020 Norman Brookes Challenge trophy. Dominic Thiem of Austria beat his close friend and archrival Alexander Zverev of Germany to book a place in his 3rd Grand Slam and 1st Australian Open final. Let’s look back at how the gritty Austrian overcame his German foe in a semi-final match that was fully injected with action, drama and intensity.
Zverev Takes The Early Lead
The match started with Thiem serving a messy and error prone opening game thus giving Zverev a break of serve in the very first game. The German thus put himself on front right at the start. That break advantage would not last long as Dominic Thiem broke back in the very next game and thus putting himself on level terms. Both players kept holding their serve for next few games but in the 7th game Alexander Zverev broke again.
The German then consolidated the break advantage with a hold of serve. The pressure of staying in the match was now getting to Thiem who was again broken in the 9th game. Zverev had quickly raced himself in front. He took the 1st set 6 games to 3 and thus wrestled a crucial advantage.
Thiem Comes Back Strongly
Dominic Thiem would not hold back for long. He broke Alexander Zverev in the 3rd game of the 2nd set, thus getting off to early advantage. He was determined to put himself back on level terms in the match. Zverev would get the break back soon but Thiem broke again to regain the lead.
Both the players appeared having trouble in consolidating their serves. The World Number 3 Thiem however did reverse this tide. He served himself to win the 2nd set and thus put himself back in the match and evened it 1 set each.
In India: Politics & Entertainment
Thiem Comes On Top
Thiem again broke in the early stages of the 3rd set but only to be broken back after few games. The Austrian then again had few break point chances but could not actualize them. Zverev raised his game and Thiem looked as if he was struggling and losing his focus and energy. The Austrian however raised his game in the tiebreaker to take it games 7 to 3 and thus give himself a 2-1 lead in the match.
Both men improved their serving in the 4th set with Zverev firing frequent aces and Thiem hitting the right spots. There was no break of serve in this set and again a tie breaker was needed to decide the winner. In the deciding tie breaker both players exchanged mini breaks but Thiem produced some breathtaking shots thus clinching it 7 games to 4.
He had now halted Zverev’s march in Australian Open 2020. Thiem, thus, put himself in the 1st ever hard court Grand Slam final. He will now take on the 7 time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic of Serbia in what should be an epic men’s final on Sunday with the 2020 Australian men’s singles trophy, up for grabs.