Dominic Thiem's French Open career comes to an end
By Andrew Stutz
Former US Open champion and two-time French Open finalist Dominic Thiem has played his last match at the French Open. Thiem, who was controversially denied a wildcard to the main draw of the tournament, lost in the second round of qualifying 6-2, 7-5 to Otto Virtanen of Finland.
Following his loss, Thiem addressed the crowd and thanked them for their support over the years. Thiem was gifted a trophy at the conclusion of the match to commemorate his years of success at the major.
Dominic Thiem announced earlier this year that he would retire at the end of the 2024 season. While he won his sole major at the 2020 US Open, Thiem's most consistent major was the French Open.
Dominic Thiem fails to make it through qualifying at the French Open
Outside of the French Open, Thiem has only advanced to the quarterfinals or better at a major three times. Thiem made it to the quarterfinals or better on five consecutive occasions from 2016 to 2020. Thiem fell in the championship match in 2018 and 2019, losing to Rafael Nadal in both finals.
Thiem's success at the French Open makes his omission from the main draw wildcard list more glaring. However, Thiem did not take offense to being relegated to the qualifying draw. Thiem shared that he had ample time and tournaments to secure a high enough ranking to get into the main draw, but that he fell short and did not deserve to make the main draw.
The 2024 French Open main draws will be announced on May 23, 2024. All eyes will be on where an unseeded Rafael Nadal will land as he likely contests his final French Open. Nadal will bid for a 15th French Open title as Novak Djokovic will battle to defend his title and number one ranking. On the women's side, world number one Iga Swiatek looks to continue her clay court domination of the tour.