Mubadala World Tennis Championship 2021: Dominic Thiem vs Andy Murray preview, head-to-head & prediction

Match Details

Fixture: (5) Dominic Thiem vs (6) Andy Murray

Date: 16 December 2021

Tournament: Mubadala World Tennis Championship 2021

Round: First round (Quarterfinals)

Category: Exhibition tournament

Surface: Hard

Prize Money: $250,000

Match timing: Not before 6 pm local time, 2 pm GMT, 7.30 pm IST

Live Telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Eurosport

Dominic Thiem vs Andy Murray preview

2021 French Open - Day One

Dominic Thiem and Andy Murray will face each other in the quarterfinals of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship on Thursday. The winner will take on reigning champion Rafael Nadal in the semifinals.

Thiem had a disappointing 2021 season as he was hampered by injuries. The Austrian's best result came at the Madrid Open, where he reached the semifinals before losing to Alexander Zverev.

Thiem suffered a wrist injury during his opening match at the Mallorca Open against Adrian Mannarino and was forced to withdraw. The Austrian then decided to call time on his season to recover from the problem. Due to his inactivity, Thiem's ranking dropped to 15.

Andy Murray also endured a tough 2021 season, ending the year 29 spots lower than when he started. However, the former World No.1 had some positive moments, including wins over Hubert Hurkacz and Jannik Sinner. He also put up a tough fight against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the first round of the US Open, pushing the Greek to five sets.

Murray will be hoping to turn the tide in 2022 and make a steady climb up the rankings.

Dominic Thiem vs Andy Murray head-to-head

Thursday's match will be the fifth meeting between the two players, with the head-to-head currently tied at 2-2.

The last time they locked horns was in the quarterfinals of the China Open in 2019. Thiem won the match 6-2, 7-6(3).

Dominic Thiem vs Andy Murray prediction

Thiem will be looking to take the lead in the head-to-head against Murray

Both Murray and Thiem will be looking to get some wins under their belt in Abu Dhabi before shifting their focus to the Australian Open in January. Despite the difference in their rankings, this promises to be a close encounter.

Thiem is coming off a long injury layoff and could be quite rusty. Murray, on the other hand, looked in decent touch towards the end of the 2021 season and will fancy his chances against the Austrian.

Murray is fantastic at absorbing pace and he will look to engage Thiem in extended rallies from the back of the court. Given the Austrian has not played any tennis of late, he could be prone to making unforced errors under pressure.

Prediction: Andy Murray to win in three sets.

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