Dominic Thiem has been forced to watch from the sidelines ever since he picked up a wrist injury at the ATP 250 event in Mallorca back in July. The Austrian, who was looking to capitalize on his 2020 US Open win, failed to carry the momentum into the 2021 season and struggled to get off to a good start.
The 28-year-old is on the verge of making a comeback, and he'll be seen for the first time in six months at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship, set to take place in Abu Dhabi from 16--18 December. Thiem confirmed his arrival in the UAE with a post he shared on social media, where he was pictured having a meal at celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay's Bread Street Kitchen restaurant in Dubai.
"Having a great dinner at Gordon Ramsay's Bread Street Kitchen after my first full practice day in Dubai. But where the f*** is @gordongram ? #veggie #wellington," the Austrian captioned his Instagram post.
Dominic Thiem seen practicing hard as he looks to make a strong comeback in Abu Dhabi
Over the past few weeks, Thiem has shared snippets on social media covering his practice sessions on the court and long hours at the gym with fitness coach Jez Green – Andy Murray’s former trainer.
The Austrian is now preparing for the 2022 Australian Open set to take place in January. Before that, he will be hoping to get off to a good start at the exhibition match in Abu Dhabi, where he is scheduled to take on Andy Murray on 16 December.
"After 2 months of hard work and preparing for the new season it's finally time to chase the sun ☀️✈️," Thiem captioned his Instagram post.
Thiem has dealt with a challenging year, not just because of injury but also due to mental health concerns and a media uproar regarding his split with ex-physio Alex Stober.
Opening up about his mental health issues on the Tennis United series in September, Thiem said, "I think mental health is as important as physical health just because you can't see what's going on in your brain, or in your head it doesn't mean that everything is good up there."
"I think that athletes can be good role models for other people. And I think it should be as easy to talk about mental issues as about physical problem," Thiem suggested.
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