Sharada Iyer, Tennis With An Accent
Back in 2017, Grigor Dimitrov charted an impressive course at the Nitto ATP Finals in London. He won all three of his round-robin matches, prevailed in his semifinal, and hoisted the championship trophy in the English capital. It was the eighth title of his career. As it turned out, it marked the start of a long wait for him to get to his ninth title.
That ninth title came at the 2024 season opener in Brisbane. As in London seven years ago, Dimitrov dominated his opponents. He won four of five of the matches he played in straight sets. The only time he dropped a set was against Andy Murray in the first round; he conceded the opening set.
These statistics made it seem as though the Bulgarian was rolling the years back. The visibly overwhelming emotions the 32-year-old had at the net revealed and magnified the irreversible passing of time.
Even before this title came his way, Dimitrov had had taken a longer path to rediscover his potential. After his 2017 season-ending highs, Dimitrov reached just one more final. In 2018, he made the finale of the ABN Amro Open in Rotterdam. He lost the match to Roger Federer.
Since that final, Dimitrov’s career has been a study in oscillation, with the fluctuations stabilising only in the last few years. He was a constant presence on the tour, and he never went off the radar in any of these intervening years. Nonetheless, it felt as though Dimitrov wouldn’t be able to get back to his peak playing days. They seemed to have come and gone.
He did have highs, such as when he beat Federer for the first time in his career in the 2019 US Open quarterfinals, or when he made the round of 16 at Roland Garros in 2020.
He also had lows.
In 2020, he contracted Covid while participating in an exhibition event while the regular tennis tour was suspended due to pandemic-related uncertainties. To add insult to injury, as Dimitrov struggled with his post-Covid rehabilitation, his health woes attracted a great deal of backlash. Questions were also raised in some corners about his participation in the event.
Then came happier times. Dimitrov’s career once again made an upswing. He notched 350 career match wins in 2021. In 2023, he crossed the 400-match milestone.
2023 was also the year in which Dimitrov finally got a chance to contest another ATP final. The first was in Geneva while the second came at the Paris Masters. It was also the first time since 2017 that the former World No. 3 had made multiple ATP finals in a season.
Given that his form picked up pace as the 2023 season drew to a close, Dimitrov looked to be playing freely while soaking in his ability to go for his shots at will.
This punch in his shots enabled him to make tour quarterfinals and semifinals on the trot after a long drought. This resurgence wasn’t just about the additions Grigor Dimitrov had made to his tactical repertoire. It was also about finding his own version of inner peace and then carrying it onto the court.
On the back of his title-winning efforts in Brisbane, it’s good to see him continue doing the same in the new year. After all, why fix something if it isn’t broken?
Tennis with an Accent 