Before Thiem addressed questions about his first-round clash with Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE), the 30-year-old first gave an update on his health: "It was a long story with my stomach. After the US Open, I couldn't do anything for two weeks before I could start training again. But now I'm fine again." Thiem is still puzzling himself about the trigger for his stomach problems: "All I know is that it wasn't bacteria. Maybe I got some bad water or food somewhere. I love spicy food, maybe I had too much of it."

Ahead of his duel with Stefanos Tsitsipas, the current world No. 7, Thiem was relaxed: "He's the favorite for sure, but if I bring my performance to the court, I'm sure I'll have chances. The last duels were all very close and were only decided in the tiebreak of the last set. Especially indoors, often only a few points decide." In this respect, the support of the home crowd will be important: "In the first years here, that might have inhibited me a little. Now it's no longer like that, especially since I was able to win the tournament in 2019. I'm looking forward to that positive energy, which is incredibly helpful for me."

Asked about his goals for the rest of the year, Thiem naturally mentioned the qualification for the main draw of the Australian Open. Depending on his performance at the Erste Bank Open, Thiem is planning to play the qualification for the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Paris and after that the ATP 250 tournament in Metz.