Dominic Thiem on life after retirement: “I don’t really miss tennis that much”

Former World No. 3 Dominic Thiem retired from professional tennis last year at just 31 years old and admitted he doesn’t really miss the sport, despite his early departure. The Austrian decided to hang up his racquet after recurring injuries prevented him from returning to his best level in recent seasons.

Thiem had a spectacular yet relatively short career, retiring at 31 due to constant wrist issues. His biggest achievements include winning the Indian Wells Masters and the 2020 US Open—a remarkable feat during the Big-3 era. He also reached the Roland Garros finals in 2018 and 2019, and the Australian Open final in 2020. Additionally, he was a finalist at the ATP Finals in both 2019 and 2020.

Now living his post-tennis life, Thiem confessed that stepping away from the sport wasn’t originally part of his plans: “I never really wanted to leave tennis, but I’m also happy to be home, to have finally spent a full winter in the cold.”

The former pupil of Nicolás Massú revealed that he played in an exhibition match, but physical issues resurfaced: “I played an exhibition match, but if I hit balls for several days in a row, my arm starts to seize up again.”

He added: “Tennis, on the other hand, I don’t miss too much. In January, my brother was in Australia following some players in the junior tournament, but I was happy to stay home. I was glad it was over.”

The Austrian also offered a reflection on his career and the ups and downs he faced along the way: “There were times when everything went better, then times when everything went wrong, phases when I played well and managed to beat very strong opponents.”

“That was a bit of the story at the end of my career: I didn’t have the sensitivity to strike the ball in the right place. I don’t know if it was mechanical, mental, or something related to a nerve in the wrist. I could have had surgery, but it might have been invasive, so I’m convinced I made the right decision.”

Thiem played his final tournament as a professional at the Vienna Open 2024 in front of his home crowd in Austria. He had a tight first set, before falling to Italian youngster Luciano Darderi 7-6[8-6], 6-2.