Marko Arnautovic teamed up with fellow Austrian sports star Dominic Thiem on the tennis court in Kitzbuhel on Wednesday.
The Hammers are in the Alpine town for a five-day training camp, while world number eight Thiem is the top seed at the ATP Generali Open, giving two of the country's top sportsmen the chance to meet for a unique sporting challenge.
The forward, who helped West Ham to a Betway Cup win over 1. FSV Mainz on Tuesday evening, was delighted to rub shoulders with the 2018 French Open finalist.
It’s not normal that we can do this because Dominic has a game tonight and he’s come out with his partner to play football and enjoy some time
Marko Arnautovic
“Dominic has done a great job and he is still young,” said the Hammer of the Year. “He’s done a lot of good things and is now in the top ten in the world. He’s a very good player but he’s still got a long way to go because he’s young and I think, if he keeps working hard, hopefully he’s going to be the top one.
“It’s not normal that we can do this because Dominic has a game tonight and he’s come out with his partner to play football and enjoy some time. Now it’s time for him to go back, concentrate, take a rest and beat this guy up!”
When Arnie, @AdriSanMiguel & @Michailantonio took on tennis star @ThiemDomi & his doubles partner Dennis Novak at #ATPKitzbuhel... pic.twitter.com/biCwi0RTJK
— West Ham United (@WestHamUtd) August 1, 2018
A big football supporter, Thiem was also happy to spend time with his fellow countryman on home clay.
“Arnie is so good, I love to watch him for every club and now I became a little bit of a West Ham fan because of today!” the 24-year-old smiled. “He’s amazing and Austria can be so happy to have him and I hope I can watch a West Ham game soon.
“It was really nice to play together. I hope you guys had a really good preparation in Austria and you have a great start the season. For us, it’s a big honour to play football with these big stars.”
Arnie is amazing and Austria can be so happy to have him and I hope I can watch a West Ham game soon
Dominic Thiem
Arnautovic teamed up with goalkeeper Adrian to take on Thiem and his regular doubles partner Dennis Novak for a game of foot tennis with a football before the two Austrians teamed up for a second game with a tennis ball – with Michail Antonio calling score from the umpire’s chair.
To the delight of the large crowd watching on, all four showed plenty of skill before the rackets were brought out and Antonio replaced Arnautovic on the clay court for a quick knock-up.
Despite losing out to him on court, Arnautovic is a big fan of Thiem and returned to Tennis Stadium Kitzbuhel to cheer on his compatriot to see him take on Martin Klizan on Wednesday evening.
West Ham will train in Kitzbuhel again on Thursday morning before playing their final pre-season match in Grodig on Friday, when they take on French Ligue 1 side Angers SCO.
The game will be streamed live on the club’s Facebook page for supporters in the UK and Ireland, with kick-off at 5.30pm BST.