Dominic Thiem beats Rafael Nadal at ATP Finals 2020, fans call match 'EPIC': Watch

Dominic Thiem oozed class on Tuesday as he dealt with 20-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal in the ATP Finals 2020. The clash saw the reigning US Open and French Open winners lock horns with an eye on making the last four of the year-end finals. The 26-year-old Austrian mastered the tiebreaks once again as he registered a 7-6(7) 7-6 (4) straight-sets win over the Spanish ace. 

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Dominic Thiem defeats Rafael Nadal in epic ATP Finals 2020 clash 

Dominic Thiem entered the ATP Finals 2020 with a 3-5 tie-break record in the season finale in 14 previous matches but proved his resolve by clinching a win over Rafael Nadal. The Austrian constantly attacked the 20-time Grand Slam champion's backhand, but a key adjustment with the forehand helped him surprise the 34-year-old.

Thiem matched Nadal shot for shot in a highly entertaining encounter, with the King of Clay describing the game as "very equal". The 26-year-old kept his calm and delivered during the key moments to seal a semi-final berth on Tuesday. 

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Thiem acknowledged that he was lucky to get the first set, having made a comeback from 5-2 down in the tiebreaker. Both players had their service broken down in the second set, with Nadal winning five straight points to save three match points when serving at 5-4 and 40-0 down.

The US Open champion responded with three straight points to move 6-3 ahead in the tiebreaker before a tired Nadal hit a return just wide to lose the match. Thiem was happy to give fans back home something to cheer about after Austria went back into lockdown amid a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

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The US Open champion had made the final last year but fell short against Greek ace Stefanos Tsitsipas. Thiem will look to set the record straight this year.

Nadal, on the other hand, will face Tsitsipas on Thursday with a semifinal place at stake. The defending champion defeated newcomer Andrey Rublev 6-1 4-6 7-6 (6) after his defeat against Theim in the opener. Nadal, interestingly, has never won the year-end finals in his career and the 34-year-old will look to add the title to his illustrious resume at the end of the season. The 20-time Grand Slam has twice reached the finals, losing to fellow Big 3 rivals Roger Federer (2010) and Novak Djokovic (2013). 

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How to watch Nadal vs Tsitsipas live in India?

Rafael Nadal and Stefanos Tsitsipas will clash at the Centre Court at the O2 Arena in London on Thursday, November 19 (Friday for Indian viewers). Fans can watch the game live on the Sony Sports Network in India. The live streaming of the group stage game will be available on SonyLIV. For in-match highlights and updates, one can keep tabs on the social media handle of ATP tour. The match begins at 1:30 am IST on Friday in India. 

(Image Courtesy: ATP Tour Twitter)