Indian Wells 2023: Dominic Thiem receives a hero's welcome from fans after practice session ahead of tournament opener | WATCH

Dominic Thiem received a warm welcome from fans after his latest practice session to prepare for the Indian Wells Masters.

Thiem acquired a wildcard to compete at the 2023 Indian Wells Masters. The Austrian was forced to withdraw from the tournament in 2022 due to a wrist injury suffered in 2021. He famously upset Roger Federer in 2019 to lift the Indian Wells trophy and hasn't returned to the tournament since.

“Hello Indian Wells! Today I received the great message that I will get a wild card for the 2023 BNP Paribas Open. It’s unbelievable news for me as it’s a tournament I love and it’s going to be the first time I played there since I won the tournament in 2019. So looking forward to seeing you all there. Thank you!," Thiem said.

Following a practice session on Monday, Dominic Thiem emerged to loud cheers from fans who had been waiting to greet him. The former World No. 3 indulged them happily and signed some autographs before departing.

Dominic Thiem will face Adrian Mannarino in his opening match in the 2023 edition of the BNP Paribas Open. Thiem leads 8-1 in the head-to-head against Mannarino. The winner of the clash will take on 19th seed Lorenzo Musetti in the second round.

How has Dominic Thiem fared in the 2023 season so far?

Thiem reacts during the ATP Finals

Dominic Thiem has had a disappointing 2023 season on the ATP Tour so far. He started his season at the Adelaide International in January, where he lost his qualifier match to Kwon Soon-Woo in straight sets.

The Austrian faced a tough challenge in his opening match at the Australian Open against fifth seed Andrey Rublev and registered his second successive straight-sets defeat.

The former US Open champion rejoined the tour during the Golden Swing at the Argentina Open, where he won his first match of the season against Alex Molcan.

"I won my first match of the season against a very good opponent. I stayed focused throughout the whole match, as well in the difficult moments. So I'm happy and I'm trying to focus fully on the second round now," Thiem said at the time.

However, Thiem was unable to repeat his heroics against Juan Pablo Varillas and was ousted from the tournament in the second round.

Thiem competed at the Rio Open next, where he lost his opening match to Thiago Monteiro. Similarly, he suffered a first-round loss to Christian Garin at the Chile Open. As a result, he has slipped down to World No. 99 in the ATP rankings following his recent string of losses.