Dominic Thiem’s comeback stepped up a gear Friday at the EFG Swiss Open Gstaad, where he overcame Peruvian qualifier Juan Pablo Varillas 6-4, 6-3 to reach his first tour-level semi-final of the season.
In a dominant performance, the Austrian pulled the 26-year-old from around the court as he took heavy cuts at the ball to dictate the baseline exchanges, advancing after one hour and 47 minutes in their first ATP Head2Head meeting.
“I played a good match yesterday and I was able to back it up today.” Thiem said in his on-court interview. “Some things I didn’t like that much. I failed to serve out at [5-2], but it was also the nerves a little bit because it is my first semi-final in one and a half years. I need the points to go back up the rankings. I was happy I was able to break the nerves.”
The former World No. 3, who missed the second half of last season due to injury, reached the quarter-finals in Bastad last week, earning his first tour-level win of the year in the process.
The 28-year-old has backed up that run in Gstaad and will next face second seed Matteo Berrettini or Spaniard Pedro Martinez. It is the first time Thiem has reached the semi-finals at a tour-level event since May 2021, when he enjoyed a run to the last four in Madrid.
“Tomorrow I can go into the match free, trying to do my best,” said Thiem, who is up to No. 195 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. “When I travelled to Bastad last week I didn’t expect to reach the quarter-finals there and then the semi-finals here. It is really, really good and I am happy with the progress.”
The 17-time tour-level titlist, who saved one match point in his first-round victory over Hugo Gaston, is aiming to triumph at the ATP 250 clay-court event for the second time, having lifted the trophy in his previous appearance in 2015.
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