Defending Champion Dominic Thiem on Wednesday announced that he will miss the US Open and the rest of the season due to a wrist injury.
“Unfortunately, I’ve had to withdraw from the US Open and will miss the rest of the 2021 season. It has been a tough decision but I know this is what I have to do. I’m really disappointed not to be able to defend the title in New York but I haven’t recovered from the wrist injury I suffered back in June at the Mallorca Open.” Dominic Thiem posted on Twitter
The World No.6 Dominic Thiem made an unbelievable comeback last year when he defeated Alexander Zverev in the final after losing the first two sets. He won his first Grand Slam tournament at the US Open in 2020. Thiem also became the first player to rally from two sets down to win the US Open since Pancho Gonzales did it in 1949.
Thiem also gave an update about his recovery as he suffered a setback last week during practice. “I hit a ball during training and started to feel some pain again. I went straight to the doctor. After some tests, they said that my wrist needs more time… to recover.”
It has been a tough decision but I know this is what I have to do : Dominic Thiem
“It was pretty shocking news and surprising for me. I knew that the US Open was going to be very tough to reach after the injury I faced but to finish the 2021 season was pretty surprising news. I’m still trying to digest that.” Dominic Thiem told in an interview
“The chances were very little [to play the US Open], but I love the tournament, so if there was still any chance, I was trying to get there. But in the end, there was no chance… and it’s a pretty dangerous injury as well, so I need to heal it. That’s why the only decision I could take was to first pull out from the US Open and then pull out from the whole season.” He added
Thiem said in his Twitter post that he needs to give his wrist some time to recover.”After some tests, they said that my wrist needs more time, so we’ve agreed on being conservative and giving my wrist some time to recover. I’ll wear the wrist splint for a couple more weeks before starting with exercises and then training with the racquet again.”
On Sunday, Roger Federer also confirmed that he would be undergoing more knee surgeries and will miss the upcoming US Open.