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The organizers of the Mutua Madrid Open were recently forced to cancel the event in view of the recent spike of COVID-19 cases in Spain. Several top players like Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Dominic Thiem had confirmed their participation in Madrid, but the cancellation threw their plans into disarray.
The ATP 250 event in Kitzbuhel is still on the calendar though, and it is scheduled to take place from 8 to 13 September. Perhaps more importantly, the claycourt event will be coinciding with the second week of the 2020 US Open; the New York Slam ends on 13 September too.
Due to the extremely crowded calendar, many players have decided to go straight to the European swing to get in their claycourt preparations - including Rafael Nadal and three-time Major winner Stan Wawrinka. Dominic Thiem, however, has refused to budge; his name is currently on the Kitzbuhel entry list, which means he is sticking to his original schedule.
The Austrian will reportedly be joined in Kitzbuhel by the likes of Alexander Zverev, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Borna Coric, Kei Nishikori, Alex de Minaur, Hubert Hurkacz, Fabio Fognini and Denis Shapovalov.
Dominic Thiem is scheduled to play two tournaments at the same time
It is well-known in the tennis community that Dominic Thiem likes having a hectic schedule. The Austrian played tirelessly throughout the lockdown too, even as the whole world was grappling with the health crisis.
Dominic Thiem played the Austrian Pro Series, the Adria Tour, the bett1Aces Open, the Ultimate Tennis Showdown and his own event Thiem's 7 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Austrian believes in getting as much match practice as possible leading up to big events, a trick that has worked for him in the past.
However, it remains to be seen how he will play in Kitzbuhel if he goes deep at the US Open. Dominic Thiem cannot physically be in two places at the same time, so he has a decision to make in the coming few weeks.
In 2019, Dominic Thiem won Kitzbuhel by defeating Albert Ramos-Vinolas in the final. The triumph was a continuation of the banner year for the Austrian, and he also picked up the trophies at Beijing and Vienna after that.
A month ago, the ATP had declared that Dominic Thiem and his top 10 peers wouldn't be eligible to compete in Kitzbuhel unless they had played, and already lost, at the 2020 US Open. But that rule hasn't done anything to make Thiem alter his jam-packed schedule.
Going by the Austrian's recent admission of wanting to climb higher up the rankings, he might want to reconsider his priorities as the ATP tour gets ready for its restart.
