The sky is the limit for Dominic Thiem. He’s only 22 years old, and his level of play has been tremendous this season, bagging a total of 38 wins already. The highly-touted Austrian will have the chance to add another victory under his belt when he faces David Goffin in the 2016 French Open quarterfinals. Can Thiem succeed in doing so, or will the Belgian get the best out of him? Read on below for a better look at this matchup.
For more tennis action, click here to see our preview of the quarterfinal matchup between Novak Djokovic and Tomas Berdych.
Dominic Thiem’s having a spectacular year, and it’s bound to be an even greater one if he manages to win it all at Roland Garros. That’s easier said than done especially when you consider that the likes of Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka are still in the hunt as well. For now, though, the Austrian’s focus needs to be on his quarterfinals opponent, David Goffin.
The head-to-head matchup between the two has favored Goffin. Nevertheless, the World No. 15 is more than capable of winning this bout, as he’s been playing excellently throughout the tournament. Thiem has won no less than 70 percent of his first serve points and is averaging almost 50 winners per match.
It’s worth keeping in mind, though, that Thiem’s got to lessen his mistakes against an opportunistic player like Goffin. The 22-year-old star has racked up at least 33 or more unforced errors in his previous four matches.
Needless to say, David Goffin is also skilled enough to take home the victory in this quarterfinals clash with Dominic Thiem. The 25-year-old Belgian, after all, already owns five wins against Thiem, and the latest one happened just a few months back at Melbourne. Goffin was solid in that match, converting 77 percent of his first serve points and winning 6-of-12 break point opportunities.
Furthermore, the same could be said for Goffin’s overall performance in Paris. He’s won no less than 72 percent of his first serve points and is only committing around 25 unforced errors per match. This efficiency is bound to do him a lot of good against Thiem, who’s primarily known to be an aggressive baseline player.
Also, Goffin will likely have a hard time in matching up with Thiem’s power, but the World No. 13 should be able to compensate for this through his speed, craftiness and court coverage.
