The third time was the charm for Dominic Thiem, as after two losses to Rafael Nadal in the last three weeks including the final of the Madrid Masters just five days ago, he provided the upset of the clay season defeating the Spaniard 6-4, 6-3 at the Rome Masters on Friday.

In a quarter-final match where both players competed at a high level, the Austrian stopped Nadal’s 17-match win streak on the red clay after titles at Barcelona, Monte Carlo, and Madrid.

Nadal handily defeated Thiem in the Barcelona Final but the 23-year old closed the gap with a hard-fought loss in the Madrid final on Sunday. On Friday, he played with confidence, without fear and with aggressiveness en route to his straight set victory over the “King of Clay”.

Thiem pressured Nadal by holding firm near the baseline more frequently and consistently ripped groundstrokes deep into the corners, placing the 30-year old on the defensive. Nadal acknowledged Thiem’s play afterward, “He was very aggressive, very strong. He played very well, didn’t miss much and was able to push me back.”

“I came in with a very aggressive game style because I knew that if I wanted to have a chance, then I would have to do something different and be more aggressive,” said Thiem. “It was a very, very good performance and I think probably one of my best matches.”

The two players have developed a rivalry on the clay this spring and while Nadal will still be the favorite at Roland Garros, he now appears to have a potential roadblock on his way to what would be his 10th French Open title. With Roger Federer skipping Paris, Andy Murray struggling and Novak Djokovic still looking to return to peak form, Thiem appears to be a legitimate contender.