Grigor Dimitrov’s career was undoubtedly conditioned by the presence of the Big 3, which prevented him from winning a few more titles. Despite the huge expectations placed on him when he took his first steps in the ATP tour, the Bulgarian player has achieved very satisfactory results even though he has never won a Grand Slam title.
Grigor Dimitrov© @AlexTheodorid1s X account
Grisha has never reached a Major final in his career, but he played an amazing match against Rafael Nadal in the 2017 Australian Open semi-finals. The champion from Haskovo played probably his best match ever, creating a memorable show with Rafa, who made the difference in the decisive moment of the fifth set and reached Roger Federer in the final.
2017 was the best year of Dimitrov’s career, winning the Cincinnati Masters 1000 and especially the Nitto ATP Finals at the O2 Arena in London. The Bulgarian defeated David Goffin in a totally unexpected final, with the Belgian having beaten Federer in a comeback match the previous day.
Grisha is ready for Bercy
Just when his career seemed to be on the downward spiral, Grigor found new motivation and has been extremely brilliant over the last twelve months. In 2024 he reached the quarter-finals twice at the Slam level and defeated Carlos Alcaraz in Miami during the spring. Grisha will be one of the protagonists of the Masters 1000 in Paris-Bercy, which starts today. This tournament is of great importance for the Bulgarian ace, who will have to defend the final reached in the last edition. Dimitrov played exceptionally well in Bercy last year, surrendering only to a great Novak Djokovic in the final act.
Novak Djokovic & Grigor Dimitrov, Paris Masters 2023© Stream screenshot
The number 8 of the seeding has a bye in the first round and will make his direct debut in the second round against the winner of the match between Argentine Etcheverry and the Chinese Zhang. During the press conference before the start of the tournament, Grigor opened up on Dominic Thiem and Rafael Nadal’s retirements: “It’s sad. I saw Dominic a couple of days ago – he was in Vienna as well. I cannot help but think about that as well. Of course, everything has a beginning and an end, but seeing competitors that you grew up with and seeing these guys that are pushing you to do better, it takes a little piece away from you; that’s just how it is. I have respect for the new generation and everyone that is playing out there, but off the court it was a lot of fun; we were always poking fun at each other and I don’t see that now. I miss that healthy competitiveness, but I have nothing but respect for these players.
I know everyone’s time is going to come up, and I’m not that close to the end, but I’m closer than a lot of the players. However, I’m still a contender, I’m still playing, and I’m going to keep on fighting to the end to stay at the top. If my body allows me to do the things that I’m doing right now, then I’m more than happy.”
Dimitrov is still motivated
The World number 9 is still in good shape and can take more satisfaction before ending his career. The Bulgarian champion is still able to put the top players in trouble when he plays his best tennis and has defeated Alcaraz twice in the last 12 months (in Shanghai in 2023 and in Miami this year). Although the best players in the world have a lot of comfort and earn a lot of money, the tennis player’s life is not easy because it is very stressful and involves many trips.
Novak Djokovic and Grigor Dimitrov© @BianchetWatches X account
In a long interview with ‘SpilXperten’, Dimitrov revealed he had experienced some really hard times: “I have experienced severe anxiety, panic attacks, even during a tennis match. It always helps when you can talk to someone, share it, even if it’s with another tennis player. We should all be more open to each other. I know it’s complicated, that it’s an individual sport and that it’s brutal, but in the end, we’re all human, we’re no different from anyone else, we just play tennis well, that’s all.”
He continued: ”I’ve been through a lot in the greatest moments of my life. If I told you these things, you would think: ‘And do you keep playing?’. Everyone has his own way. You have to listen to yourself, what you need. Tennis is very important, but after these years of experience not only on the court, also off it, You start to realize the importance. We all want to pretend things, but the important thing is inside. I work on it, but it still costs me a lot.”