Eight-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer looked distraught and hopeful as Dimitrov told Sinner to give him two minutes and called for a medical timeout. But it was not to be.
London: The Centre Court at Wimbledon was moving towards an upset victory when 34-year-old Grigor Dimitrov won the first two sets against world number one Jannik Sinner. However, an injury changed the mood of the match. Having held serve in the third set for 2-2 with an ace, Dimitrov went down holding the pectoral muscle beneath his right arm. Eight-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer looked distraught and hopeful as Dimitrov told Sinner to give him two minutes and called for a medical timeout. But it was not to be.
Sinner, who progressed into the quarter-finals, said that he did not see this as a win. “He has been so unlucky in the past couple of years. He has struggled a lot with injury and seeing him have this again is very tough," he addressed the crowd in the on-court interview. What took Dimitrov's performance up a notch was that he had conceded defeats due to injuries in four straight grand slams before coming into this year's Wimbledon.
Dimitrov in cruise control
During the match, Sinner could rarely answer Grigor Dimitrov's fiery services, that had an average serve speed of 192 KMH. Dimitrov broke early in the match and took control of the proceedings with a total of three breaks. It was only in the third set that Sinner managed to hold on to his serve in the first game. The Bulgarian veteran managed to get 14 aces, with his best serve speed clocking at 226 KMH.
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The intensity shown by Dimitrov was so high that Sinner lost his footing multiple times during the match, and had to take a medical timeout to tend to his elbow. Dimitrov showed signs of the injury after missing a low backhand volley, which became worse as the game progressed. He served an ace out wide to hold serve for 2-2 in the third set before collapsing in pain. Sinner rushed to his aid before Dimitrov went off court, but he returned just moments later in tears and was unable to continue, barely able to wave to acknowledge the crowd's warm ovation.
Not a stranger to injuries
Dimitrov's recent injury woes began 12 months ago at Wimbledon, where he slipped and damaged his knee in the first set of his fourth-round clash against Daniil Medvedev. He was also forced to retire from matches at the US Open, Australian Open and the recent French Open. In the US Open, Dimitrov had overcome Andery Rublev's challenge in the US open gruelling a three-hour, 39-minute five-set match. However, his body failed during the match against Frances Tiafoe. In the Australian Open, he retired mid-match against Jiri Lehecka in the semi-finals. In the recently concluded Roland Garros, Dimitrov retired in the first round against American qualifier Ethan Quinn due to a thigh injury.
Dimitrov, whose career best ranking was world number three, had said that he had planned to limit the number of tournaments after suffering from a major shoulder injury in 2019. The same year, he had defeated Roger Federer at the US Open in a five-set thriller. The next year, he was diagnosed with Covid-19, and his ranking slumped close to the 100s.
What next for Sinner
Sinner, into the quarter-finals at Wimbledon for the fourth consecutive year, will next face world number 10 Ben Shelton, who earlier beat Lorenzo Sonego in four sets. He is on a potential semi-final collision course with seven-time champion Novak Djokovic, but there will be question marks over the Italian's own fitness after his struggles against Dimitrov. Sinner has never reached the Wimbledon final, going as far as the semi-finals in 2023.
He has played in the past three Grand Slam finals, taking the title at the US Open and the Australian Open and losing the French Open showpiece in a five-set epic against Carlos Alcaraz in June.
