'One of the few to beat Novak, Roger and Rafa,' Alexander Zverev sad to see ‘best friend’ Dominic Thiem retire due to wrist injury

It’s strange, it’s a bit of my generation. It's a shame he's stopping due to injury, not because he thinks he's played enough. We all know that the main reason is, of course, the wrist injury, which he has been struggling with for years.  Alexander Zverev said at the press conference 

Thiem is also one of the few players who defeated the Big 3- Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic his career, and for this, Zverev lauded him. 

The reality is I'm losing one of my best friends on the tour. He is one of the greatest champions we have. He was one of the few to beat the three best players in the world.  Alexander Zverev added 

Thiem reached four Grand Slam finals, winning the 2020 US Open (by beating Zverev in the final), which took him to No.3 in the rankings. Following the US Open triumph, a wrist injury made him miss 10 months of tennis. 

Alexander Zverev has faced Dominic Thiem 12 times on the ATP Tour 

Alexander Zverev first met Dominic Thiem in 2016 in Munich, which the latter won. He went on to win the next two matches he played against Zverev, in Nice and Roland Garros.

They locked horns with each other 12 times on the ATP Tour with Thiem leading the head-to-head record 8-4. The last time they played against each other was at the 2023 Halle Open, which the German won. 

Zverev is in Rome for the ATP 1000 Masters event and easily defeated Aleksandar Vukic in his first round to reach the next round where he will face Luciano Darderi. On the other hand, the 30-year-old Thiem, in spite of dealing with recurring wrist problems, played in Estoril, Monte Carlo, Munich, and Madrid this year. In Madrid, Thiem failed to qualify for the main draw.