Former world number three Dominic Thiem was handed a wildcard to the Australian Open, as he continues his comeback from a serious wrist injury. | Sport24news
Dominic Thiem celebrates at the ATP World Tour Finals at The O2 Arena in London on 15 November 2020.
Former world number three Dominic Thiem was handed a wildcard to the Australian Open on Friday, as he continues his comeback from a serious wrist injury. The Austrian, who pushed Novak Djokovic to five sets in the 2020 Australian Open final, was sidelined for nine months with the injury sustained during the 2021 grass-court season.
He has shown encouraging signs on his return to the tour, rising from outside the top 350 to 102 in the second half of this year, including semi-final runs at Gstaad, Gijon and Antwerp. His rapid ranking rise meant the 29-year-old only narrowly missed directly qualifying for the main draw of the Australian Open, which starts in Melbourne on 16 January.Other wildcards went to American pair Taylor Townsend and Christopher Eubanks, and French players Diane Parry and Luca Van Assche.In times of uncertainty you need journalism you can trust. For 14 free days, you can have access to a world of in-depth analyses, investigative journalism, top opinions and a range of features.
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