Dominic Thiem opts to skip Miami to prepare for clay swing

World no. 4 Dominic Thiem has joined Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer on the Miami Open exit list, deciding not to travel to the USA for one tournament and focusing on his clay swing.

Thiem didn't make a strong start of the season, winning only five matches and failing to reach the semi-final. Dominic lost to Roberto Bautista Agut in Doha a week ago and suffered a heavy 6-3, 6-4 defeat to a qualifier Lloyd Harris in the opening round of Dubai.

Thiem never looked like a better-ranked player on the court, taking only 11 points on the return and getting broken once in each set to hit the exit door and switch his focus to clay.

"Well, you know that I like to play a lot, also when I was younger. Now I need to reset myself a little bit to go fresh into the clay season. Right now, I'm in a tough period, and it wouldn't be the right thing to go to Miami. There was no pain at all in the foot today; it's a bit on and off. Maybe I'll do a quick check or an MRI to see how that thing is developing.

But it's not the main issue; it's just that I'm not playing well, that in general, it is a challenging period for me. I need to see that I'm starting fresh and ready for the first clay tournament, wherever I wanna play," Dominic Thiem said.