Dominic Thiem arrived at the Millennium Estoril Open without a win in five tour-level events, but he put on a resilient performance to secure a first-round victory on Tuesday. Thiem defeated fellow Austrian Sebastian Ofner 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in a two-hour, five-minute encounter.
Despite a shaky start, Thiem broke his opponent twice in each of the second and third sets, showing flashes of his trademark brilliance off his backhand.
Thiem’s victory sets up a second-round showdown against American Ben Shelton, a member of the #NextGenATP. Thiem’s conversion of five out of 16 break points was enough to secure the win and improve his ATP Head2Head series lead against Ofner to 3-0. Thiem’s resilience and ability to turn the match around with some flashes of brilliance make him a player to watch in the upcoming rounds.
