Tennis News: Dominic Thiem clinches the Barcelona Open

Dominic Thiem might have started slowly but thoroughly outgunned Danil Medvedev in the finals of the ATP 500 Barcelona Open. The Austrian won 12 out of the last 13 games to beat the Russian 6-4, 6-0. After starting the clay court swing with an early exit in Monaco, Thiem bounced back handsomely to claim his first title in Barcelona. Thiem also became only the second Austrian to win the tournament after Thomas Muster. Thiem now has 13 ATP Tour titles, nine of which have come on clay. The World no. 5 who has been the second best player on clay further proved his prowess on the surface by becoming the only player to defeat Rafael Nadal in the semis of Barcelona. Also, Thiem is only the second player after Novak Djokovic to beat Nadal 4 times on clay. His current form will make him one of the favourites for the upcoming Madrid Open. Thiem has been the runner-up in Madrid for the past two years.