Dominic Thiem (Twitter)
The 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem faces the local wildcard Michael Geerts in the round of 32 of the European Open on Monday.
The 29-year-old returned to action in March after recovering from a wrist injury he suffered in 2021. Thiem took time to find his rhythm as he exited in the first round in a number of tournaments before striking form at the Swedish Open, where he reached the quarterfinal.
The experienced campaigner is coming into the tournament on the back of an impressive showing in the Gijon Open. Thiem made it to the tournament’s semi-finals with wins against Joao Sousa, Marcos Giron, and Francisco Cerundolo. His run ended against Andrey Rublev.
The Belgian youngster has primarily played in the Challenger events and the ITF circuit in 2022. This will be his first tour-level match this season.
The 27-year-old has mostly had abysmal returns this season but his standout moment came in May when he won an ITF event in Italy. Geerts has been struggling with poor form recently and has won only one match since losing in the semi-finals of a Challenger event in Leon on July 30. He will need to be at his best to give Thiem a run for his money.
The head-to-head scoreline currently stands at 0-0 as Dominic Thiem and Michael Geerts have never faced each other as yet.
Prediction: Dominic Thiem to win in straight sets.
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