Former World No. 3 discusses post-retirement life

Dominic Thiem is having little trouble settling into life without competing on the ATP Tour, but that does not mean a life without tennis.

The former No. 3 in the PIF ATP Rankings and 17-time tour-level champion was in Munich on Tuesday at the BMW Open by Bitpanda, where he tossed the coin for defending champion Jan-Lennard Struff’s first-round match against Francisco Cerundolo. He then settled into a courtside seat in the sun to watch some of the Tuesday action unfold at the clay-court ATP 500.

“I’m enjoying retirement. It’s nice,” Thiem told ATPTour.com. “I’m completely in a different department now, with my company, with renewable energy, but of course I’ll always remain in tennis, and I love the sport. It’s really nice to see a tournament from a different perspective, and I’m enjoying it a lot.”

Thiem was speaking from the stands as he prepared to watch #NextGenATP Diego Dedura-Palomero take on Denis Shapovalov in Munich. He has also continued to follow the ATP Tour from afar since he played the final event of his pro career last October in Vienna. He said that his retirement has, in some ways, changed his relationship with tennis for the better.

“I love to watch it. I was always a big fan of the sport, and when you are a pro player it is not that relaxing sometimes to watch, because you are always scared someone can overtake you in the rankings or whatever,” said the 2020 US Open titlist. “Now I can watch every match very relaxed. For example, I am now seeing Diego for the first time, which is super interesting. It’s just really nice to sit here and watch some good tennis from a different position.”

The Austrian identified Jakub Mensik and Joao Fonseca as two of the ATP Tour’s young stars that keep him coming back as a TV spectator, although he also cited the emergence of even newer talent as something that excites him.

“Mensik and Fonseca are amazing. I love to watch them,” said Thiem. “They already made it. There is no question they are really going to be at the top. Mensik won Miami, Fonseca already won Buenos Aires. They are already at the top, and now it’s really interesting to see players like Diego and Justin Engel because they are still a little bit lower ranked. Mensik and Fonseca, I could watch them every week on the TV, but it’s also interesting to watch somebody for the first time.”

The 17-year-old Dedura-Palomero did not disappoint Thiem on Tuesday. The Berlin native, who became the first player born in 2008 or later to compete in an ATP Tour match, led Shapovalov 7-6(2), 3-0 when the Canadian retired. It was the sort of breakthrough moment that Thiem admits he misses from his playing days.

“I miss the feeling after a great victory or after a tournament victory,” he said. “Those are the moments which are priceless, and also are never going to come back. The feeling is unbelievable, but I really don’t miss all the work to actually come to those moments. To be in the position for those winning feelings, it’s a very long and very hard road. I know what it takes and I’m not missing that part at all, so it’s a good combination.”