“Really dangerous situation”
Deadly poisonous snake disrupts Thiem’s qualifying match
December 30, 2023, 2:43 p.m
Dominic Thiem shoots an exciting match in Brisbane. The former US Open winner wins despite being behind against Australian Jamese McCabe. But off to the side, someone steals the show: a poisonous snake. One of Australia’s deadliest reptiles strays to the edge of the court.
Former US Open winner Dominic Thiem involuntarily became acquainted with Australian wildlife at the tennis tournament in Brisbane and experienced a moment of shock. During the Austrian’s qualifying match against the Australian James McCabe, one of Australia’s most poisonous snakes strayed onto the court at the ATP tournament. The referee had to stop the game at the end of the first set before the animal could be removed by an expert.
It was an eastern brown snake, about 50 centimeters long, which is one of the deadliest reptiles in Australia. “I really love animals, especially exotic ones,” said 30-year-old Thiem. “But this was a really venomous snake and it was near the ball kids, so it was a really dangerous situation.”
No one was injured in the incident, partly because spectators spotted the snake between power cables at the edge of the court in good time. An expert came and lured the snake into a bag. “Something like this has never happened to me before, it’s something I will definitely never forget,” said Thiem. No game was possible for 40 minutes, but the Austrian didn’t let himself be disturbed.
The former world number three is fighting to return to the top of the world rankings after his long injury break. After his final victory at the US Open 2020 against Alexander Zverev, he was repeatedly set back by wrist problems. Thiem is currently ranked 98th in the world rankings. The 30-year-old at least jumped the first qualifying hurdle in Brisbane against the 20-year-old McCabe, and despite initially being significantly behind and having several match points against him, he ultimately won 2:6, 7:6 (7:4), 6:4.