Thiem handed Australian Open wildcard

Former world number three Dominic Thiem was handed a wildcard to the Australian Open Friday, as he continues his comeback from a serious wrist injury.

The Austrian, who pushed Novak Djokovic to five sets in the 2020 Australian Open final, was sidelined for nine months with the injury sustained during the 2021 grass-court season.

He has shown encouraging signs on his return to the tour, rising from outside the top 350 to 102 in the second half of this year, including semi-final runs at Gstaad, Gijon and Antwerp.

His rapid ranking rise meant the 29-year-old only narrowly missed directly qualifying for the main draw of the Australian Open, which starts in Melbourne on January 16.

Thiem, a two-time French Open runner-up, won the US Open in 2020.

Other wildcards went to American pair Taylor Townsend and Christopher Eubanks, and French players Diane Parry and Luca Van Assche.