World number 14 Dominic Thiem will not defend his titles in Umag or Gstaad this season, after deciding to enter his home tournament in Kitzbuhel.
Last year the tournaments were held in respective weeks and Thiem played at all three, but this season the tournaments are all being played in the same week due to the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Strong Period For Thiem Last Year
The tournaments were particularly strong for Thiem last year, with the Austrian winning his second and third ATP titles and a semifinal at consecutive clay 250 tournaments.
Thiem's run started on the week beginning the 20th July, where he eased past Joao Sousa 6-4, 6-1 to win his second ATP title at the Croatia Open in Umag. He then continued his strong run at the Suisse Open in Gstaad, beating David Goffin 7-5, 6-2 for his third ATP title.
However his home tournament, the Austrian Open Kitzbuhel, where he was the top seed, ended in disappointment as after a tough few matches, Thiem lost to eventual champion Philipp Kohlschreiber in the semifinals. It was a strong three weeks overall, with the Austrian gaining over 500 points towards his ranking.
Olympics Causing Scheduling Clash
It is the tennis tournament at the Rio Olympics that has caused the three tournaments to be moved to the same week.
All three tournaments have been scheduled to take place on the week beginning the 18th July, with Gstaad being moved back to replace the Rogers Cup in Canada, whilst the tournament in Atlanta is the only ATP tournament being held in the week in which Kitzbuhel is typically held.
The Rogers Cup, which will see the women play in Montreal and the men play in Toronto this season, has been pushed back to the week beginning the 22nd July from the week beginning the 8th August, when the Olympic tournament is being held.
It is unlikely that Thiem's ranking will be majorly affected by the clash. The Austrian has had a strong season so far, and could well be inside the top ten by the 18th July.