New York: US Open champion Dominic Thiem on Sunday said that chasing future Slams will be easier now that he has that elusive first tennis major under his belt following three near misses.
With that monkey off his back, Thiem says he expects to be able to play more freely at Slams as he bids to snatch titles away from the Big Three of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Djokovic.
“It’s going to be or I expect that it’s going to be easier for me now in the biggest tournaments,” Thiem told reporters.
“Because, of course, I had it in the back of my head that I had a great career so far, way better career than I could ever dreamt of, but until today there was still a big part, a big goal missing.
“With this goal achieved, I think and I hope that I’m going to be a little bit more relaxed and play a little bit more freely at the biggest events,” he added.
Thiem said lifting the US Open was a dream come true.
“I achieved a life goal, a dream of myself, which I had for many, many years. Of course, as a kid, as well, when I started to play tennis. But back then it’s so far away,” he told reporters.
“Then I got closer and closer to the top. At one point I realized that, ‘Wow, maybe one day I can really win one of the four biggest titles in tennis.’
“I put a lot of work in. I dedicated basically my whole life until this point to win one of the four majors. Now I did it. That’s also for myself a great accomplishment.”