Dominic Thiem loses at Rio Open, falling to 1-2 in 2023

Updated Feb. 20, 2023 8:37 p.m. ET

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RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Dominic Thiem lost in the first round of the Rio Open on Monday, falling to Thiago Monteiro 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (2).

The former world No. 3 and 2020 U.S. Open champion, who came in ranked at No. 96 after battling right wrist and abdominal injuries, fell to 1-2 on the year. He missed the Australian Open and got his first win last week at Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Thiem, who won the Rio Open in 2017, dropped the first set against the 83rd-ranked Monteiro in 27 minutes, with the Austrian making a series of unforced errors.

Thiem righted himself in the second set, relying on his forehand and his patience on the baseline. After a back-and-forth third set, the Brazilian won the tiebreaker comfortably to close out the 2-hour, 46-minute match.

Monteiro will next face either second-seeded Cameron Norrie or Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the clay-court tournament.

Defending champion and second-ranked Carlos Alcaraz faces Mateus Alves in the first round on Tuesday.

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

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