Melbourne: The 2020 finalist Dominic Thiem’s Australian Open ended in the first round on Tuesday, with the former world number three crashing out to fifth seed Andrey Rublev in a setback on his return from injury.
While Russia’s Rublev held a clear advantage in terms of current ranking, Thiem had a far greater Grand Slam pedigree as the US Open champion in 2020. He is also a two-time finalist at Roland Garros.
But the Austrian, ranked 98, was outplayed in 36 Celsius (96.8 Fahrenheit) heat as he continued his return from a wrist injury which kept him off court for nine months across the 2021 and 2022 seasons.
Rublev banked a 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 win on John Cain Arena — his first of the year after two defeats in warm-up events, with either Australia’s Max Purcell or Finland’s Emil Ruusuvuori his next opponent.
“First of all I’m happy that I was able to get through in straight sets. It was super hot today so happy I can save some energy for future matches,” said Rublev, who reached the quarter-finals at Melbourne in 2021 and won four titles last year.
