By Richard Pagliaro | Thursday, April 19, 2018
A highly-charged Novak Djokovic hurled a clenched fist fighting off three set points to take the opening set.
The man in black pulled the plug on Djokovic's uprising.
Watch: Nadal Dominant, Djokovic Resilient
Striking with depth and precision, Dominic Thiem reeled off the final four games toppling Djokovic, 6-7 (2), 6-2, 6-3, in a quality match roaring into the Monte-Carlo quarterfinals for the first time in five appearances.
The Buenos Aires champion raised his 2018 record to 19-4, including a 10-1 mark on his favored red clay.
World No. 1 Rafael Nadal dismissed Karen Khachanov, 6-3, 6-2, to set up a blockbuster quarterfinal vs. Thiem tomorrow.
Ten-time Monte-Carlo champion Nadal has won five of seven meetings with Thiem, including a Roland Garros semifinal shellacking last June, weeks after Thiem swept the king of clay in straight sets in Rome.
Intent on taking the first strike today, Thiem cranked nine aces, denied two of three break points and took charge of critical exchanges at crunch time.
Willing to stand toe-to-toe with the two-time champion in extended baseline rallies, Thiem often beat Djokovic in crucial forehand-to-forehand crosscourt exchanges when it mattered most.
It was Thiem's second straight conquest of Djokovic in seven meetings, following his 7-6 (5), 6-3, 6-0 thrashing of the former No. 1 in the Roland Garros quarterfinals last June.
Serving at 2-5, Djokovic saved a set point nudging a lob then guarding the line for a full stretch forehand volley for deuce, eventually holding for 3-5.
Thiem bolted a backhand winner down the line for double set point in the next game. On his third set point, Thiem overshot the mark with a forehand beyond the baseline. Serving as his own worst enemy, Thiem spit up his second double fault of the game to face break point.
A brilliant Djokovic defensive lob drove the Austrian back and when Thiem missed a bounce-smash, the former No. 1 screamed in defiance waving his arms to exhort fans after breaking back for 4-5. The ninth-seeded Serbian opened the tie break with a mini break. Djokovic surged through six of the final seven points of the breaker, snatching a one-set lead in one hour on the Austrian's third double fault.
Punishing heavy groundstrokes that dislodged clumps of red clay near the baseline, Thiem did a fine job mixing the height of his shots to give Djokovic different looks.
The two-time French Open semifinalist banged out the break for a 3-2 second-set lead. Thiem torched an ace to back up the break.
Striking with menacing ambition, the fifth seed surged through five straight games. When Djokovic's backhand expired in the middle of the net, Thiem forced the final set.
Navigating a tense deuce game, Djokovic slid his third ace for a 3-2 lead in the final set. Thiem answered with a strike that singed the sideline leveling after six games.
The seventh game saw Thiem dig out some devious slice backhands testing Djokovic at deuce again. Coach Marian Vajda shift in his seat nervously as Djokovic slapped his trademark shot, the two-handed backhand, into the middle of the net to face break point.
Unloading a flurry of forehands, Thiem launched himself into a jolting backhand down the line rattling out the break for 4-3.
The Buenos Aires champion, who had success slashing the serve down the T, curled a slice ace out wide then banged down a second straight ace to confirm the break.
Djokovic hit a body serve to deny match point, but tapped a routine forehand volley into tape to face a second match point. Attacking net, Djokovic confronted a tricky short backhand and looped it long as Thiem moved on to a possible Nadal showdown in two hours, 29 minutes.
It was a good day for high seeds.
Grigor Dimitrov went airborne rallying past Philipp Kohlschreiber, 4-6 6-3 6-4 to reach firs Monte-Carlo quarterfinal since 2015 with shots like this one.
The fourth-seeded Dimitrov will play doubles partner David Goffin for a spot in the final four.
The sixth-seeded Belgian converted five of 10 break points dispatching 11th-seeded Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut, 6-4, 7-5, in one hour, 40 minutes.
Marin Cilic took a walkover win into the quarterfinals.
The second-seeded Croatian advanced when scheduled opponent Milos Raonic withdrew with a knee injury sending Cilic into a quarterfinal clash with either Italian qualifier Andreas Seppi or Kei Nishikori in what would be a rematch of the 2014 US Open.