Austrian tennis pro Dominic Thiem, who has been injured at the wrist for a long time, should take German number one Alexander Zverev as a role model on his way back to the top of the world, according to Boris Becker.
Zverev is playing absolute world-class tennis again after his injury break thanks to the necessary “tenacity and obsession.” “That speaks for his character, mentality and attitude. He would rightly qualify for the ATP Finals in Turin,” said six-time Grand Slam winner Becker ahead of the match of his current protégé Holger Rune, who will compete in Basel. Zverev already reached the second round at the tournament in Vienna, where he will face Cameron Norrie.
Becker believes Thiem can return to top-10
Thiem was last listed among the world’s top ten players at the end of October 2021. Becker trusts the 30-year-old to return there. “He’s physically back to playing his best tennis,” said Becker, who recently started his new job as coach of Danish talent Rune. “I am completely coach, design the training, decide how much to play, also go into match preparation. Sure, there are always assistants, but the training I lead, otherwise I can not take the responsibility,” said Becker.
The German tennis legend has also worked with Novak Djokovic in the past, and he believes he can still do a lot with him in the future. “With Novak, the Sky (sky) is the limit, by itself he will not stop winning. The competition is in demand,” the 55-year-old said. Young players, however, must first learn to deal with the often “illusory” expectations in their own environment.
