18:27
Gasquet – Thiem 3:2
Thiem immediately uses his first break chance, benefiting from the fact that Gasquet gets stuck in the game obstacle with his forehand. So there’s the instant re-break and everything’s back on track.
18:26
Gasquet – Thiem 3: 1
But Thiem does not give up. With a backhand slice, the 2020 US Open winner lures the opponent to the net in order to pass him with the backhand longline. break ball!
18:25
Gasquet – Thiem 3: 1
Gasquet then flat-footed the competitor with a backhand. A good serve follows. 30 both!
18:24
Gasquet – Thiem 3: 1
It works better with the backhand. The longline ball of the Lower Austrian sits. Then the Frenchman fails. A murmur goes through the hall when his backhand stop gets stuck on the edge of the net.
18:23
Gasquet – Thiem 3: 1
Suddenly Thiem acts incorrectly. Although he has a second chance in the rally, he is standing in the field for a drive volley, he misses this forehand and gives up his service.
18:22
Gasquet – Thiem 2: 1
A little later, Thiem messed up a forehand inside-in and was faced with two breakballs.
18:21
Gasquet – Thiem 2: 1
For the second time in a row, Gasquet catches the edge of the net, which shortens the trajectory of the ball and Thiem can no longer get there. 0:30!
18:19
Gasquet – Thiem 2: 1
Now Thiem gives up a point as a server. After the Frenchman’s net roller, the 29-year-old is a little too late and heaves his forehand into the net.
18:18
Gasquet – Thiem 2: 1
Then, however, a server gives up the point for the first time. Thiem recognizes an opponent’s backhand stop early on, runs the ball and executes it resolutely with the forehand. Then Gasquet serves his second ace of the match and closes the game to 2-1.
18:16
Gasquet – Thiem 1: 1
Then Gasquet shows Serve and Volley, puts the backhand ball down very sensitively. Shortly thereafter, three game balls are at hand again.
18:15
Gasquet – Thiem 1: 1
Gasquet has done everything about the first so far. Nevertheless, another long rally is now developing – this time with the better end for the French because Thiem puts a forehand in the mesh.
18:14
Gasquet – Thiem 1: 1
Thiem then also has three balls, has to play the second one and thus produces an ace. So the Lichtenwörther also gets his service to zero.
18:13
Gasquet 1-0 Thiem
Dan Thiem doesn’t take long, starting with an ace. But after that, the second serve is required for the first time. A very long rally follows, patience is required. With a stop, the Lower Austrian gets the opponent running, then plays the stop. Gasquet wants to save overhead, which doesn’t work.
18:11
Gasquet 1-0 Thiem
Gasquet immediately picks up speed. The first comes reliably and ensures very fast points. Finally, the Frenchman ignites the first ace and does it to zero.
18:09
1 sentence
Now Gasquet opens the match on the hard court under the roof of the hall. The first serve comes through the middle and doesn’t leave Thiem with much opportunity for a controlled return.
18:08
Head 2 Head
The two pros face each other for the fourth time. Previously, you were always on hard court. The matches under the roof of the hall – like here in Metz – went to Gasquet in Basel in 2015 and in Vienna in 2017. In 2019, in the open air in Beijing, Thiem won for the first time.
18:07
Gasquet 2022
Looking ahead to 2022, the Frenchman’s best result comes from the clay court tournament in Geneva (semi-finals). There were also four quarterfinals on the ATP tour – most recently in Winston-Salem. At the US Open, Gasquet lasted three rounds – until Rafael Nadal came. Most recently in the Davis Cup he was used in two matches and won them.
18:06
Once top 10 and a major title in doubles
But like Thiem, Gasquet was once a top 10 player. He reached the highest ranking position in 2007 as seventh. The Frenchman has contested 32 finals on the tour and won 15 of them. But these were at most 250s. Gasquet lost his three Masters finals and was also three times in the semi-finals of Grand Slam tournaments. At the French Open in 2004 he won the doubles competition and also won Olympic bronze with a partner at his side in 2012.
18:04
Entry and coin toss
Our protagonists have just entered the Court Patrice Dominguez. After a few steps of preparation, you meet with the chair umpire Manuel Messina to vote at the net. The coin falls in favor of Thiem, who opts for setback. Then both play a bit.
17:59
Gasquet in Metz
In contrast, Gasquet is at this tournament for the 11th time since 2003 at the start. The Frenchman reached the final in 2004 and reached the semi-finals in 2009 and 2010. He also won the 2006 tournament in doubles. The 36-year-old is benefiting from a wild card from the organizer this week, because the right-hander is only 85 in the world rankings.
17:50
Thiem in Metz
The ranking list position is not yet enough to get into the main fields at the ATP tournaments. But Thiem still benefits from the protected ranking, which spared him the qualification in Metz. Incidentally, the Lower Austrian has good memories of the Moselle Open. In his first and only appearance here so far, he made it to the final in 2016, where he lost to Frenchman Lucas Pouille in two sets.
17:40
Success spoiled Thiem
In view of 28 finals on the ATP tour and 17 tournament victories, the demands of the 2020 US Open winner are high. Thiem was already in the final at the Australian Open 2020, as well as in Roland Garros 2018 and 2019. He also sniffed the title at the ATP finals in 2019 and 2020. The former number 3 in the world also has a Masters (Indian Wells 2019) on the account. But due to the injury break and the lack of results, Thiem had slipped down to 352nd place in the world rankings. He has since worked his way up to 182.
17:30
Thiem 2022
Due to a protracted hand injury, Thiem did not win a match for over a year and suffered one defeat after the other even after his return. The way of finding a form still proves to be very arduous. At the Challenger in Salzburg, the Lower Austrian was finally able to celebrate a win again in July. From then on I showed an upward trend. On the ATP tour, the right-hander reached the quarterfinals in Båstad and the semifinals in Gstaad. The 29-year-old was also in the last eight in Kitzbühel. After the US Open ended in the first round, Thiem served another challenger in the past few weeks. In Rennes, the Lichtenwörther made it to the final, where he lost out to Ugo Humbert.
17:20
bon jour!
Welcome to the Moselle Open! At the 250cc tournament in Metz, the first round is taking place today. Dominic Thiem is also involved, who has to deal with Richard Gasquet around 6 p.m.