Dominic Thiem claims he's doing "very well" physically, says he hopes to "close the small gap" between him & the top players soon

Dominic Thiem's run at the 2021 Mutua Madrid Open came to an end on Saturday with a 3-6, 4-6 loss to Alexander Zverev in the semifinals. Thiem has now admitted that a few elements of his game still need fine-tuning, while assuring everyone that he is in good shape ahead of the rest of the clay season.

Dominic Thiem will next participate at the 2021 Italian Open, where he is seeded fourth. The Austrian has been drawn to face either Guido Pella or Marton Fucsovics in the second round.

Speaking to the media in the aftermath of his Madrid loss, Dominic Thiem asserted that he has seen the last of his knee injury that had kept him out of Monte Carlo and Belgrade last month. The 27-year-old, who suffered blisters in Madrid and played with a taped thumb and index finger on Saturday, is also hopeful that he will not face any discomfort on his hands in Rome.

"Physically, I'm doing very well," Thiem said. "I have no pain in my knee and the blisters on my hands are getting better. I hope I can play without tape next week."

Dominic Thiem also acknowledged that he is a little behind the other top players in terms of match readiness at the moment. However, he believes that the three-week lead-up to the French Open should be enough time to bridge that gap and get back to his best level.

"Almost three weeks left [before RG] and that's a good thing," Thiem added. "I hope that by then, I can close the small gap that has opened up [gap in level between him and top players]."

Turning his attention to his performance against Alexander Zverev, Dominic Thiem admitted that his serve and groundstrokes weren't up to the mark. The Austrian also claimed he wasn't his usual aggressive self, and that his overall game lacked its usual timing and precision.

"I didn't serve well enough, the groundstrokes were a bit too error-prone," Thiem said. "I wasn't aggressive enough and also had a bit of problems with timing. Overall it wasn't quite enough."

Part of Domi's presser after his SF loss yesterday ❤ pic.twitter.com/3LA6u1CYIm
— Helene ~ ⚓ (@DomiBucky) May 9, 2021

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Dominic Thiem pointed out that he didn't deserve to win against Alexander Zverev, as the German was the 'better player'. The Austrian cited Zverev's mammoth serve speeds in this regard to explain how there wasn't much he could do against that kind of firepower.

"If I look back now, it wasn't enough against Sascha who played well I think and if you, for example, look back at the last game; his serve was 227-228 (kph)," Dominic Thiem said. "You cannot do too much so, he was just the better player."

"For me, it's always more demanding to play on a hardcourt" - Dominic Thiem on why he prefers clay

Dominic Thiem at the F1 Grand Prix of Spain

Dominic Thiem has always maintained that playing on clay is a lot easier for him than on hardcourt. Thiem has a long-standing foot issue that often flares up on harder surfaces, but clay is a lot more forgiving.

The Austrian reiterated that during his press conference on Saturday, explaining how playing on clay exerts less pressure on the joints in the lower torso.

"For me it's always more demanding to play on a hardcourt, even though rallies are much longer on clay," Thiem said. "For the joints and for the feet, it's much more comfortable to play on clay. I've grown up on this surface so I don't mind playing a lot of games here."

The Austrian also revealed that his participation in the Lyon event would depend on how he fares in the Italian Open.