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By Chris Oddo | Saturday February 25, 2017

Dominic Thiem has been widely criticized for his refusal to tone down his busy schedule, and many pundits believe his unwillingness to take more weeks off on tour is the main reason that he struggled in the second half of 2016 after a blistering start that saw him reach the French Open semifinals and claim a Top 10 ranking.

More: Sock Charges into Delray Final

Apparently all he needed was some time on his beloved clay.

Thiem put together an impressive performance on Saturday to book his spot in the Rio Open final, taking down Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-1, 6-4 in 82 minutes to set up a final with Pablo Carreno Busta.

Thiem was strong from start to finish and dictated with his groundstrokes off of both wings. He won 15 of 22 second-serve return points and broke Ramos-Vinolas’ serve five times on 12 opportunites.


In Saturday’s second semifinal Pablo Carreno Busta saved a match point late in the second set then rallied past 18-year-old wild card Casper Ruud, 2-6, 7-5, 6-0.

The Norwegian youngster won his first two tour-level matches to reach the semis, and after winning a marathon game to hold for 5-4 in set two he earned a match point with Carreno Busta serving. But the Spaniard delivered a big serve that Ruud could not put in play and proceeded to take the final nine games of the match.

 

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