Dellien delivers the goods to deal with Thiem

Hugo Dellien put in a dominant display to deny Dominic Thiem a comeback victory at Roland-Garros 2022.

The 28-year-old Bolivian, who has played every match this season on clay, capitalised upon an under par showing from the 2018-19 finalist to post 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 on a packed Court Simonne-Mathieu.

Thiem, working has way back from a wrist injury sustained last June, remains without a tour victory since Rome 12 months ago.

World No.87 Dellien advanced to his joint-best Grand Slam showing to take on either Portuguese qualifier Nuno Borges or 21st seed Karen Khachanov.

Story of the match

There was a warm applause for former world No.3 Thiem, the crowd eager for the Austrian to regain his confidence and footing on the terre battue.

An early break point presented a warning sign, Thiem striking a brace of inside-in forehand winners to fend off trouble.

However, Dellien was a wall at the baseline and was clipping in plenty of disguised drop shots and power play to pin the 2020 US Open champion behind the baseline.

Thiem wasn’t assured in his shot choice or connections. One moment glancing trademark backhands down the line, but then the 28-year-old was being rushed into flicked, defensive strikes.

In contrast, Dellien was flourishing on the front foot and opened up a 4-1 advantage. The Bolivian, qualifying for ATP events in Monte-Carlo, Barcelona, Estoril and Madrid this season, exemplified his clay-court prowess to tease the errors from Thiem’s racquet and steal and immediate break in set two.

Dellien was delivering the goods, running round to whip a lassoed forehand pass to cap another 4-1 lead. The world No.87 roared towards his team in delight and maintained his level and control on the contest to the very finish.

Key stats

Dellien’s variety caused Thiem a plethora of problems, including six successful drop shots and 10/12 success rate at the net.

The Bolivian also snatched away the initiative on his delivery, landing 80 per cent of first serves and denying Thiem any break points during the straight sets triumph.

It was an emphatic scoreline for the world No.87, who has wielded his racquet all season on the clay courts, impressing with a 32-14 record across all tiers, including qualifying.

For current world No.194 Thiem it’s back to the drawing board having lost his past 10 matches.

What the winner said

With a vocal group of 10 family and friends cheering him on, it was a milestone moment for the victor.

“It’s the first time ever playing in a Grand Slam with my daughter with me. It’s something I will never forget,” beamed the Bolivian.

“My friends from my whole life are here, they brought with them souvenirs (homemade bracelets and flags) from kids at the club where I used to play at home. Very simple but a very special gesture.

“It’s a very special victory for me because I have played very big players, difficult matches, but I wasn’t winning them. It’s one of the biggest wins of my career.”

Dellien also made sure to praise and reassure his opponent.

“I think Dominic is such a good player. He will come back to a high level for sure. He will come back for sure to fight for the best tournaments," he added.