In a match that should have started on Monday, when play was completely washed out, the 13th seed's power proved more efficient than Granollers' claycourt experience as he reached his first grand slam quarter-final with a 6-2 6-7(2) 6-1 6-4 victory.
"Two years ago I was here with (Latvian) Ernests (Gulbis) and he played semi-finals, and back then I couldn't really imagine that I'd go this far myself one day, and it's already here two years later and it feels really good," 22-year-old Thiem told reporters.
Gulbis lost on Wednesday against Belgian 12th seed David Goffin, who is both a friend of the Austrian and his next opponent.
"We practice a lot together (and).. also hang around a little bit outside the court. I think it's going to be (a) very nice match to watch," Thiem said.
Against Granollers, Thiem won the first set for the loss of just two games but suffered a blip in the second set, throwing his racket to the ground in frustration as he missed an overhead to go down 5-4, and then playing a poor tiebreak which he conceded 7-2.
Granollers had twice benefited from withdrawals -- with Frenchman Nicolas Mahut quitting midway through their second-round match, while Rafael Nadal pulled out before their third-round clash with a wrist injury -- but he was tested to his limits by Thiem.
Rain interrupted his contest with Thiem at one set all on Tuesday but the Austrian was much the better player on Wednesday, outpacing the world number 56, who failed to convert six of seven break points.
(Reporting by Julien Pretot and John Stonestreet, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
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