_01.jpg) Dimitrov in2023 Washington Open | |
| Native name | Григор Димитров Димитров |
|---|---|
| Country (sports) |  Bulgaria |
| Residence | Monte Carlo, Monaco |
| Born | (1991-05-16)16 May 1991 (age 34)[1] Haskovo, Bulgaria |
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) |
| Turned pro | May 2007 |
| Plays | Right (one-handed backhand) |
| Coach | Daniel Vallverdu |
| Prize money | US$30,385,342[2] |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 476–302 |
| Career titles | 9 |
| Highest ranking | No. 3 (20 November 2017) |
| Current ranking | No. 32 (13 October 2025)[4] |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | SF (2017) |
| French Open | QF (2024) |
| Wimbledon | SF (2014) |
| US Open | SF (2019) |
| Other tournaments | |
| Tour Finals | W (2017) |
| Olympic Games | 2R (2012) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 56–78 |
| Career titles | 0 |
| Highest ranking | No. 66 (26 August 2013) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | 3R (2013) |
| French Open | 2R (2013) |
| Wimbledon | 2R (2011,2013) |
| US Open | 1R (2011) |
| Mixed doubles | |
| Career record | 3–1 |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| French Open | 1R (2011) |
| Team competitions | |
| Davis Cup | 20–4 |
| Hopman Cup | RR (2012) |
| Last updated on: 25 July 2025. | |
Grigor Dimitrov Dimitrov (Bulgarian:Григор Димитров Димитров,pronounced[ɡriˈɡɔrdimiˈtrɔf]; born 16 May 1991) is a Bulgarian professionaltennis player. He has beenranked as high as world No. 3 in singles by theATP, making him the highest-ranked Bulgarian in history. Dimitrov reached the ranking after winning the biggest title of his career at the season-endingATP Finals in November 2017. He has won nineATP Tour singles titles.
Prior to his professional career, Dimitrov enjoyed a successful junior career, in which he reached the world No. 1 ranking and won consecutivemajor boys' singles titles at the2008 Wimbledon Championships and the2008 US Open. In October 2013 at theStockholm Open, Dimitrov became the first Bulgarian man to win an ATP Tour singles title. By reaching the2024 French Open quarterfinals, Dimitrov became the second player born in the 1990s (afterDaniil Medvedev), to complete the career set of both Grand Slam and Masters 1000 quarterfinals.[5] As of2025 Wimbledon, he was the male player with the longest active streak and all-time fifth-longest ofconsecutive Grand Slam appearances, at 58 which ended when he withdrew from theUS Open.[6][7][8]
Dimitrov was namedBulgarian Sportsperson of the Year in 2014 and 2017, marking the first and second occasions a tennis player received the honor since the award's inception in 1958. In 2017, he was also awarded theBalkan Athlete of the Year.[9][10][11] In December 2024, he was selected the winner of theStefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award.[12]
Grigor Dimitrov was born inHaskovo to father Dimitar Dimitrov, a tennis coach, and mother Maria Dimitrova, a sports teacher and former volleyball player, in 1991.[13] He first held a tennis racket, given to him by his mother, at the age of three,[13] and when he was five he began to play daily. In his early years his father served as his coach, but after he proved his talent in the tournaments for juniors, he made it clear that he would have to develop in other conditions. At the age of 16, Dimitrov turned professional.
In 2007, Dimitrov joined the academy "Sanchez-Casal", where he was further trained under the leadership ofEmilio Sánchez andPato Álvarez. Since March 2009 Dimitrov trained inParis, France, where he joinedPatrick Mouratoglou'stennis academy and spent the next four seasons there and he appointed Patrick Mouratoglou as coach for 2012.[14]
Dimitrov began datingMaria Sharapova in late 2012. He and Sharapova only confirmed their relationship after the2013 Madrid Open where the Bulgarian managed his first win against a world No. 1, beatingNovak Djokovic.[15] Sharapova and Dimitrov separated in July 2015.[16] At the end of 2015, he started discreetly dating American singerNicole Scherzinger, the lead vocalist ofThe Pussycat Dolls.[17] Their romantic relationship ended in 2019. Since then, he has been involved in relationships with businesswoman Lolita Osmanova, president of theLuxury International magazine, as well as Romanian actressMădălina Ghenea. Since April 2025, Dimitrov is in a relationship with Mexican actressEiza González, confirmed through anInstagram post.[18]
In addition to his native Bulgarian, he speaks English and says his main interests are sports, cars, computers and watches.[19] Early in his career, Dimitrov was nicknamed "Baby Fed" due to the striking similarity of his forehand and one-handed backhand technique to those ofRoger Federer, who is ten years older and was already a dominant figure in tennis at the time.[20]
Dimitrov’s cousin,Alexander Vasilev, is also a tennis player competing on the ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors; he has reached a career-high ITF boys’ ranking of No. 2.[21]
He claimed his first major junior cup, the U14 European title, at the age of 14.[22] In 2006, he won theOrange Bowl U16 boys singles[23] and was later named the Eddie Herr International 2007 Rising Star.[24]
In 2007, Dimitrov was the finalist at theOrange Bowl U18 boys singles losing toRičardas Berankis ofLithuania. WithVasek Pospisil, he reached theUS Open doubles final falling toJonathan Eysseric andJérôme Inzerillo.
He began the 2008Grand Slam season with a quarterfinal showing at theFrench Open, losing to Poland'sJerzy Janowicz in three sets. However he went on to winWimbledon after defeatingHenri Kontinen of Finland in the final. He won the title without dropping a set despite playing with a shoulder injury throughout the tournament. The victory saw him join former junior championsRoger Federer andStefan Edberg and guaranteed him a wildcard entry into the 2009 Wimbledon men's draw. His success continued at theUS Open, which he won on 7 September, defeating American qualifierDevin Britton in two sets.[25] On his way to the title he also defeated top seedYang Tsung-hua of Taiwan in the semifinals. After the tournament Dimitrov announced that he was ending his junior career and focusing on improving hisATP ranking.[26] On 8 September 2008, he became junior world No. 1 overtaking Yang Tsung-hua.[27] He closed at No. 3 of the junior ranking that year.[28] Dimitrov compiled a singles win–loss record of 74–28 as a junior (and 42–20 in doubles).[29]
Junior Grand Slam performance – Singles:
Australian Open: A (-)
French Open: QF (2008)
Wimbledon:W (2008)
US Open:W (2008)
In 2008, Dimitrov began frequent participation in men's events. His first title came on clay at a futures tournament in Barcelona.His first ATP level match was at theRosmalen Open where he lost toIgor Andreev in straight sets. After his junior US Open title he won back to back futures tournaments in Madrid on hardcourt and rose 300 places to career high ranking of 477. The achievement attracted enough attention to earn him a wildcard into theMadrid Open qualifying draw where he lost to then-No. 64,Florent Serra of France. After being granted another wildcard to theSwiss Indoors qualifying draw, he defeated No. 122,Jiří Vaněk, in three sets in the first round for his first ATP level win, before losing toJulian Reister.
In 2009, he was granted a wildcard to the main draw of theRotterdam Open and scored an upset over then-world No. 23,Tomáš Berdych, earning his first ATP Tour main-draw win. In the second round, he faced world No. 1,Rafael Nadal, and lost in three sets.
He was granted a wildcard to the main draw of theOpen 13 in Marseille but lost to world No. 8,Gilles Simon, in the first round, despite serving for the match at ninth game of the third set. He then completed two victories in the Davis Cup against Hungary. He lost toDanai Udomchoke in straight sets in the second round of theBangkok Open. Four first-round exits in Challengers followed. He then reached the quarterfinals after qualifying of two successive Challengers at theTrofeo Paolo Corazzi andNottingham Trophy. He reached the second round of theQueen's Club Championships after defeatingIván Navarro, but lost in two tiebreaks toGilles Simon.
On his Grand Slam debut at theWimbledon where he got a wildcard as the 2008 juniors champion, he won the first set of his first-round match againstIgor Kunitsyn but then suffered a knee injury. Despite this he attempted to continue but lost the following ten games before he retired.
He was granted a wildcard to the main draw of theSwedish Open but lost in the first round toGuillermo Cañas. He reached the quarterfinals of the ChallengerOpen Castilla y León losing out in three sets toMarcel Granollers. He then lost in the second round toMartin Fischer in straight sets at theIstanbul Challenger. As the 2008 winner of theUS Open boys tournament he was granted a wildcard for theUS Open qualification tournament. He won his first-round match againstTobias Kamke but in the second round lost to the top seed of the qualifying,Thomaz Bellucci. Dimitrov won his first doubles Challenger title at theATP Challenger Trophy withTeymuraz Gabashvili beatingJan Minář andLukáš Rosol. He then received a wildcard at theStockholm Open but lost in the first round toJarkko Nieminen.
Dimitrov started the season with a quarterfinal finish at a Challenger event ofInternationaux de Nouvelle-Calédonie. He then attempted to qualify for theAustralian Open, but lost in the first round toRobert Kendrick in three sets.
He bounced back a week later by qualifying at theHonolulu Challenger, but lost toDonald Young in the second round. Dimitrov then participated for Bulgaria in theDavis Cup, claiming all three wins in a 3–2 victory over Monaco. Following the Davis Cup tie, Dimitrov had a number of early losses in various Challenger tournaments. Dimitrov won his first ATP Tour match of the year on the grass courts of theQueen's Club in London. He beatAlex Bogdanovic before losing to world No. 31,Feliciano López, in the second round. He then had a great run in theMarburg Open, a Challenger event, where he came through qualifying to reach the semifinals where he lost out toSimone Vagnozzi. Dimitrov again had a number of disappointing losses in Challenger events and another Davis Cup tie. Dimitrov then participated in four futures tournaments, posting impressive results, including two tournament victories in Germany, and another in Spain. Dimitrov gained enough points to enter the world's top 250 for the first time in his career.
His good form translated to the Challenger Tour, capturing three consecutive titles, the first coming at theGeneva Open Challenger, defeatingPablo Andújar in three sets. And back to back titles at theBangkok Open, where he beat former top 20 playerDmitry Tursunov in the quarterfinals andKonstantin Kravchuk in the final, and at theBangkok Open 2 defeatingAlexander Kudryavtsev.[30][31] He made an early exit in his first Challenger after a two-week break but bounced back a week later, beating top 100 playerLukáš Lacko and world No. 32Michaël Llodra on the way to the final of theOpen d'Orléans. In the final, Dimitrov lost toNicolas Mahut in a third set tiebreak. After two disappointing Challenger tournaments in Germany, in which Dimitrov suffered first round exits, he reached the semifinals ofIPP Open in Helsinki, his last tournament of the year. There he played Lithuanian youngsterRičardas Berankis. After the loss of a tight first set in a tiebreak, Dimitrov dominated the second set but was dominated in turn by Berankis in a third set loss. In an off-court incident after the match, Dimitrov pushed the chair umpire with both hands and swore at him because he felt he was treated unfairly after some close calls in the first set tiebreak. Dimitrov was fined €2,000. By reaching the semifinals in Helsinki, Dimitrov reached his best ever ATP World ranking of No. 106.
His first tournament of the year was theAustralian Open where he advanced through thequalifying rounds with the loss of just one set. He defeated world No. 38,Andrey Golubev, to advance for the first time to the second round of aGrand Slam tournament where he lost to 19th seedStanislas Wawrinka. Nonetheless, Dimitrov achieved his top ever ATP ranking ending January at World No. 85. Thus, he became the top ranked Bulgarian male tennis player of all time.
Dimitrov then qualified for theRotterdam Open but lost to eighth seedJo-Wilfried Tsonga in the first round in two sets.[32] He then lost in the first rounds of theMarseille Open andDubai Tennis Championships to Dmitry Tursunov andRichard Gasquet, respectively. Dimitrov then won theChallenger de Cherbourg defeating defending champion and second seed Nicolas Mahut in the final.
He then qualified for theMiami Open losing toSergiy Stakhovsky. Dimitrov became the first Bulgarian man ever to be seeded at an ATP World Tour tournament being seeded eighth at theU.S. Clay Court Championships but lost in the second round toTeymuraz Gabashvili. At theBarcelona Open, he lost in the first round toJuan Mónaco. He had reached his first quarterfinal in an ATP tournament at theBMW Open, after defeatingMarcos Baghdatis but then lost toFlorian Mayer in three sets. Dimitrov lost in the first round of theFrench Open toJérémy Chardy.
Dimitrov then advanced to his second ATP quarterfinals at theEastbourne International after he defeated sixth seededKevin Anderson in the second round, but lost in the third round to third seedJanko Tipsarević. He also competed in the doubles withAndreas Seppi and became the first Bulgarian man ever to reach a doubles final at an ATP tournament, they lost toJonathan Erlich andAndy Ram. AtWimbledon, he lost a memorable second round match to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, in a tight four-setter. He then reached the second rounds of theHall of Fame Tennis Championships andFarmers Classic, losing to AmericansDenis Kudla andAlex Bogomolov Jr. At theAtlanta Tennis Championships, he fell toRajeev Ram in the first round. At theWestern & Southern Open Dimitrov defeatedMarsel İlhan in the first round, but lost to world No. 6,David Ferrer, in the second round in three sets.[33] He also played in the third round of theWinston-Salem Open being defeated byAlexandr Dolgopolov in a third set tie-break. At theUS Open, Dimitrov was defeated byGaël Monfils in the first round.[34] At theOpen de Moselle, Dimitrov was beaten in 53 minutes by qualifierIgor Sijsling in the first round.[35] After that, in theThailand Open, Dimitrov beatIvan Dodig andSimone Bolelli, before falling toAndy Murray in the quarterfinals in two sets.
In his next tournament, at theChina Open, he lost once again to top-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the first round. AtShanghai Masters Dimitrov beatMarsel İlhan in the first round but was defeated by Andy Roddick in the second round in two tight sets.[36] At theStockholm Open Dimitrov beatRyan Sweeting andJuan Ignacio Chela before losing toMilos Raonic in the quarterfinals.[37] He ended the year ranked No. 76.
Dimitrov started his 2012 season by competing at theHopman Cup alongsideTsvetana Pironkova. Their team was defeated by theCzech Republic 1–2, after they won a match in mixed doubles but lost their singles matches. Then, their team defeatedDenmark 2–1.[38] Against USA, Dimitrov dispatched Mardy Fish in straight sets in his first win (although not official ATP win) against a top 10 player.
At theAustralian Open, Dimitrov defeatedJérémy Chardy to reach the second round but then he lost in five sets toNicolás Almagro. Dimitrov competed in thePacific Coast Championships but lost in the first round to Kevin Anderson, despite winning the first set easily, lost the next two in tie-breaks.[39]
AtIndian Wells, Dimitrov defeatedIvan Dodig in the first round, but lost to David Ferrer in the second round. Dimitrov's next tournament was theMiami Open where he reached the fourth round, after defeatingMikhail Kukushkin,Juan Ignacio Chela, and upsetting world No. 7, Tomáš Berdych, his first win over a top-ten player, before losing to Janko Tipsarević.[40][41] Dimitrov entered the Challenger eventPrague Open as the fifth seeded player. In the first round he defeatedJan Hájek and then lost toAljaž Bedene in the second. At theFrench Open, Dimitrov was a set and a break up against 17th seedRichard Gasquet before a 38 shot rally left Dimitrov cramping up and Gasquet vomiting, and caused Dimitrov to lose momentum, the set, and eventually the match.[42]
Dimitrov's next tournament was theBirmingham Championships. He beatBobby Reynolds,Gilles Müller and Nicolas Mahut and then reached his first ATP semifinal by beating the No. 9 seed, Kevin Anderson by coming back from a set down. Dimitrov became the first ever Bulgarian male tennis player to reach an ATP semifinal.[43] In his first ATP semifinal, Dimitrov lost to tenth seededDavid Nalbandian in straight sets.[44] This tournament helped him become No. 65 in the rankings.
At the2012 Wimbledon Championships, Dimitrov faced the No. 32 seed, Kevin Anderson in the first round. Dimitrov won in a very close four sets. In the second round, he faced the CypriotMarcos Baghdatis, where Dimitrov retired due to an injury. His next tournament wasSwedish Open. Seeded sixth, he eliminatedRogério Dutra da Silva,Frederico Gil, and third seedAlbert Ramos all in straight sets to reach a second ATP semifinal in his career. In the semifinal, he lost to the top seed and eventual champion David Ferrer in straight sets. Dimitrov then competed in theSuisse Open Gstaad. He defeated sixth seedJulien Benneteau,Dustin Brown, andŁukasz Kubot. In his third career semifinal, he lost again – this time to Thomaz Bellucci in two tough tiebreaks.
On the grass of Wimbledon, Dimitrov represented his country for the first time in theOlympics. In the first round, he defeated Pole Łukasz Kubot again in two tight sets, two weeks after he had beaten him in the Swiss Open quarterfinal. He fell in the second round to the 12th seed, Gilles Simon – his fourth loss against Simon (whom he has never beaten).
On hardcourts, Dimitrov has failed to qualify forRogers Cup andWestern & Southern Open. In both Masters tournaments, he lost in the first round of the qualifying round toMarco Chiudinelli andRajeev Ram respectively. Dimitrov suffered a first lost at the final slam of the year, theUS Open to Benoît Paire in four sets. He ended his drought at theThailand Open, reaching the second round before losing to Richard Gasquet in three tight sets. He then qualified for theJapan Open, but fell to Juan Mónaco in straight sets.
At the Masters event ofShanghai, he defeatedPablo Andújar before losing to world No. 2Novak Djokovic. At theSwiss Indoors Basel Dimitrov reached the quarterfinals, defeatingViktor Troicki in straight sets and Julien Benneteau in three tie-break sets, before losing toPaul-Henri Mathieu in two tie-break sets. His next tournament was theParis Masters, after receiving an entry from the qualifying draw. He beatJürgen Melzer before his 2012 campaign ended at the hands of Juan Mónaco.[45] Dimitrov ended 2012 ranked world No. 48 in singles.
Dimitrov began his 2013 season by competing at theBrisbane International. He defeatedBrian Baker, world No. 13Milos Raonic, Jürgen Melzer, and Marcos Baghdatis to reach his first ATP singles final, thus becoming the first Bulgarian player to reach an ATP final.[46][47][48] He lost to world No. 3 and defending championAndy Murray in straight sets, despite being a break up in both sets.[49] Dimitrov pairedKei Nishikori in the doubles and reached the semifinals, but withdrew due to Nishikori's injury. This performance also meant that Dimitrov surpassed $1 million earned in prize money,[50] a feat which no other male Bulgarian tennis player has accomplished. In his next event, theSydney International, Dimitrov suffered a first-round straight-set loss to ItalianFabio Fognini.[51]
At theAustralian Open, Dimitrov suffered a first-round straight-set defeat by Julien Benneteau.[52] He also competed in the men's doubles event with Marcos Baghdatis. The pair defeated fourth seedsMax Mirnyi andHoria Tecău in the second round,[53] before losing toJuan Sebastián Cabal andRobert Farah Maksoud in the third round in two close tie-break sets.[54] Despite losing in the first round, Dimitrov became the first male Bulgarian player to rank inside the top 40 after the event.[55] He then competed for Bulgaria in theDavis Cup against Finland, and won both his singles matches againstJuho Paukku and Micke Kontinen, but lost his doubles in five sets (with partnerDimitar Kuzmanov) againstHenri Kontinen of Finland andHarri Heliövaara. Finland ended up winning the tie 3–2.
At theZagreb Indoors, Dimitrov lost in the first round toIvo Karlović in two tie-breaks.[56] At theRotterdam Open, Dimitrov beatBernard Tomic and Nikolai Davydenko, and Marcos Baghdatis in three sets.[57][58][59] In the semifinals, Dimitrov lost against world No. 7 and eventual champion,Juan Martín del Potro, in straight sets.[60] At theIndian Wells Open, Dimitrov became the first Bulgarian male tennis player to be seeded in aMasters 1000 event.[61] In singles, he beatMatthew Ebden in two sets, but lost to world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the third round.[62] In doubles he partnered withFrederik Nielsen; they lost to Ivan Dodig andMarcelo Melo in the second round.[63] At theMiami Open, Dimitrov beatSimone Bolelli, but lost to second seed Andy Murray in straight sets in the following round.[64] Indoubles with partnerFrederik Nielsen, they reached semi-finals losing in straight sets against the eighth seeds,Mariusz Fyrstenberg andMarcin Matkowski.[65]
Dimitrov's next tournament was the clay-courtMonte-Carlo Masters, where he reached his first quarterfinal at this level beatingXavier Malisse, eighth seed Janko Tipsarević, andFlorian Mayer, all in straight sets,[66] but lost in three sets to eight-time defending champion and third seed Rafael Nadal.[67] This good run in Monte Carlo meant Dimitrov entered the top 30 in the ATP rankings for the first time, at No. 28. His next event wasBarcelona Open, seeded 14th, he received a bye, but lost in the second round, despite leading 5–2 in the first set, he lost in straight sets to in-formTommy Robredo.[68]
At theMadrid Open, following a victory over fellow 21-year-oldJavier Martí, Dimitrov recorded the biggest win of his career, defeating world No. 1, Novak Djokovic in a three set match, in just over three hours. The two had met twice before, with Djokovic taking both encounters. In the third round, despite winning the first set, he lost in three sets to 15th seed Stan Wawrinka.[69]
Dimitrov's next event was at theInternazionali d'Italia. In what was his fourth victory over the Cypriot out of five matches, he beat Marcos Baghdatis in straight sets in the first round, with one break of serve deciding both sets. In the second round he lost in straight sets against ninth seed and world No. 9 Richard Gasquet – his fourth loss against the Frenchman out of four matches.[70]
At theFrench Open, Dimitrov was seeded 26th, thus becoming the first ever Bulgarian male tennis player to be seeded at a Grand Slam tournament.[71] He beatAlejandro Falla in the first round, after the Colombian retired trailing one set to love and one game down in the second set, citing an elbow problem.[72] Dimitrov eliminated wildcard world No. 324,Lucas Pouille, in straight sets in the second round, thus becoming the first ever Bulgarian male tennis player to reach the third round of a Grand Slam.[73] He lost in straight sets against world No. 1, Novak Djokovic, in the third round.[74]Dimitrov also played in thedoubles with partner Frederik Nielsen losing in straight sets to seventh seededAlexander Peya andBruno Soares in the second round.
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In the grass season, Dimitrov played theBirmingham Championships, where he was seeded tenth. He facedDudi Sela in the first round, he came back from a set down and won the third set in a tie-break, but lost to four-time championLleyton Hewitt in the second round in straight sets. He then played theBoodles Challenge, an exhibition event, he lost to Janko Tipsarević and Novak Djokovic on a match tie-break, but defeatedJerzy Janowicz in straight sets.[75] At theWimbledon Championships, Dimitrov eliminated Simone Bolelli in straight sets and then lost in the second round to world No. 55,Grega Žemlja, 11–9 in the fifth set.[76]
AtSwedish Open, Dimitrov reached semifinals for his second consecutive year. He eliminatedElias Ymer andFilippo Volandri in three sets, and upset world No. 20, Juan Mónaco, in the quarterfinals, in straight sets.[77] In the semifinals he lost toFernando Verdasco, in an epic three set battle.[78] He then started hisUS Open Series campaign at theWashington Open, Dimitrov received a bye and defeatedXavier Malisse andSam Querrey in straight sets.[79][80] In the quarterfinals, Dimitrov lost in two tiebreak sets to the German veteranTommy Haas.[81] At theRogers Cup, he fell in the first round the SpaniardMarcel Granollers in straight sets, but rebounded at theWestern & Southern Open, defeating world No. 15 Nicolás Almagro andBrian Baker, before losing to Rafael Nadal in three sets in the third round. The Bulgarian then suffered three consecutive first round exits at theUS Open toJoão Sousa in five sets, theChina Open toRoberto Bautista Agut in straight set, and theShanghai Masters toKei Nishikori in straight sets as well.
At theStockholm Open Dimitrov won his first ATP title by defeating top seed David Ferrer in the final, coming back from a set down, becoming the first ever male Bulgarian player in the Open era to win such a title. This win also meant Dimitrov reached a career-best No. 22 in the world. He followed it up with a quarterfinal showing at theSwiss Indoors defeatingRadek Štěpánek and Alexandr Dolgopolov in straight sets, before losing to childhood idolRoger Federer in two tight sets. He played his final event of the year at theParis Masters, where he beatMichaël Llodra and Fabio Fognini, both in three sets, but then lost to Juan Martín del Potro in the third round, despite winning the first set. Dimitrov finished the year ranked 23rd in singles and 68th in doubles.
On 16 December 2013, Dimitrov received the second most votes for theBulgarian Sportsperson of the Year award, earning 1331 points and finishing just behind wrestlerIvo Angelov.[82]
Dimitrov started the 2014 season ranked 23rd. His first event was theBrisbane International, where he took part in the last event too and reached his first final at that time. He was now seeded fifth. However, now he was unable to repeat that good performance, winning in the first round in two sets againstRobin Haase in under one hour, but then losing againstMarin Čilić in two sets,[83] losing both sets to five games with a break of his serve in the last game deciding both sets. He also competed in the doubles with partnerJérémy Chardy and won in the first round against BritsFleming andHutchins[84] (winning the deciding champion tiebreak), but then lost in the second round against Federer and Mahut[85] in a match which featured three tiebreaks, with a champion tiebreak again deciding the match. Dimitrov then played at the exhibition tournament inKooyong, Australia, an event which featured top players Richard Gasquet, Stan Wawrinka and Tomáš Berdych. However he failed to take a single victory (losing in straight sets to Kei Nishikori[86] andFernando Verdasco[87]), and ultimately pulled out prior to the seventh place playoff.
Seeded 22nd at theAustralian Open, Dimitrov had his best run at a major event, defeatingBradley Klahn,[88]Lu Yen-hsun,[89] eleventh seed Milos Raonic and Roberto Bautista Agut in succession, leading him to his first ever major quarterfinal, where he lost to top seed andworld No. 1 Rafael Nadal in four sets,[90] after winning the first and also having three set points to win the third. As a result of this career-best run at a Grand Slam tournament, Dimitrov entered the world's top 20 for the first time (at No. 19),[91] becoming the first ever Bulgarian male tennis player to do so.
Next, in February, he played at theRotterdam indoor event, where he was seeded eighth. Dimitrov beat world No. 28 Dmitry Tursunov in the first round 2–1 sets. Dimitrov then lost to world No. 24, Ernests Gulbis, in straight sets.[92]
Dimitrov played in theAcapulco hard court event, where he was seeded 4th. Dimitrov beat world No. 71,Marinko Matosevic, in the first round and Marcos Baghdatis in the second in straight sets. In the quarterfinals, Dimitrov beat seventh seed and world No. 18, Ernests Gulbis, in two sets to one in a match lasting over 2½ hours. In the semifinals Dimitrov beat second seed and world No. 7, Andy Murray, for the first time in a match that lasted almost three hours – losing the first set then overcoming the Brit in two tiebreaks; thus, reaching his third ATP final where he defeated Kevin Anderson, in three sets. The victory was Dimitrov's first win at an ATP 500 level tournament[93] and with it he reached his highest ever ATP rank – No. 16. Following his win, Dimitrov played at theIndian Wells Masters, an ATP 1000 event, where he was seeded 15th and received a bye into the second round where he beat Robin Haase in straight sets, but then lost in the third round in two sets to one to world No. 22, Ernests Gulbis, who reached the quarterfinal.
Dimitrov then played inMiami, where he was again seeded 15th and had a bye in the first round. He beatAlbert Montañés 2–1 sets (losing the second set on a tiebreak) in round two. In the third round, in what was his second loss against the Japanese out of two matches between them, he lost in a tight two sets to 20th seed Kei Nishikori, who went on to reach the semifinals. After Miami, Dimitrov reached a new career-high ranking of No. 15.
In April, he played for the BulgarianDavis Cup team in the Europe Group II playoffs between Greece and Bulgaria. In the opening match of the tie, he beat No. 690 teenager Markos Kalovelonis 3–0 sets, losing just six games. He then teamed up with No. 344Dimitar Kutrovsky, who previously brought a second win for Bulgaria, and they beat the Greek team ofAlexandros Jakupovic and Markos Kalovelonis 3–0 sets, thus bringing the tie to a crucial 3–0 lead, meaning Bulgaria keeps their Europe Group II position for 2015 and Greece gets relegated to Europe Group III.
Just beforeMonte Carlo, Dimitrov reached a new career-high ranking of No. 14.[94] At theMonte-Carlo Masters clay-court event, he was seeded 12th. Dimitrov beat in-form No. 32Marcel Granollers 2–1 sets in the 1st round, then another Spaniard – qualifierAlbert Ramos, ranked just outside the top-100, also 2–1 sets. However, in what was his fourth loss out of five matches between them, Dimitrov lost 2–0 sets to sixth seed David Ferrer in round three.
He then played in theBucharest clay-court event, where he was given a wildcard and was the top seed and had a bye in the first round. In what was the first meeting between the two, in round two Dimitrov beat No. 79Jiří Veselý 2–0 sets. He beatSergiy Stakhovsky 2–0 sets in round three, then beat third seed No. 24 Gaël Monfils in the semifinals after leading in the first set when Monfils retired,[95] thus reaching his fourth ATP final. In the final, Dimitrov defeatedLukáš Rosol 2–0 sets, winning the first on a tie-break, then winning the second set with the loss of just one game to win his third ATP title and first one on clay.[96]
In May, he played in theMadrid Open clay-court event, where he was seeded 12th. Dimitrov beat local wildcardPablo Carreño Busta 2–0 sets in the first round,[97] then in the second round another wildcard – No. 164Marius Copil – 2–1 sets, coming back from a set down, winning the deciding set on a tie-break. However, in what was his first loss against the Czech out of three matches between them, in round three he lost 2–1 sets to sixth seed No. 6, Tomáš Berdych, after winning the first set.
Dimitrov then played at theItalian Open, where he was again seeded 12th. He beat No. 47Édouard Roger-Vasselin 2–1 sets, No. 52 Ivo Karlović 2–0 sets, then sixth seed, Tomáš Berdych, 2–1 for a third victory against the Czech out of four matches between them, then 15th seed Tommy Haas in the quarterfinals, after the German retired while losing 1–0 in sets. In what was the fifth match between them and the first match that Dimitrov was unable to win a set in, he lost 2–0 sets to first seed, Rafael Nadal, in the semifinals. This reaching of the Rome semifinal was Dimitrov's best ATP Masters performance. He also successfully played inthe Rome doubles with partner Lukáš Rosol and they beat unseeded world No. 4 Colombian pairJuan Sebastián Cabal andRobert Farah Maksoud in the first round 2–0 sets, winning both sets on a tie-break. In the second and third rounds, they beat second seeded Austrian-Brazilian duo ofAlexander Peya andBruno Soares then unseeded Marin Čilić andSantiago González, both 2–1 sets. They lost 2–0 sets to undeeded Robin Haase and Feliciano López in the semifinals. This performance meant Dimitrov reached a new career-best singles ranking of 12th,[98] and also moved 58 places up the doubles rankings, to No. 84.[98]
He then played atFrench Open, where he was seeded 11th. In round one he lost 3–0 sets to big-serving No. 37 Ivo Karlović, whom he recently beat in Rome.
In June, Dimitrov played at theQueens grass-court event, where he was seeded fourth and had a bye into round two. He beat local No. 168James Ward in round two, then No. 53 Édouard Roger-Vasselin in the third round, both 2–0 sets. Dimitrov was due to play eighth seed Alexandr Dolgopolov in the quarterfinals, but received a walkover when the Ukrainian retired before the match, citing a thigh injury. Dimitrov then faced first seed, Stan Wawrinka, in the semifinals, and won in straight sets. Dimitrov claimed his first title on a grass court against Feliciano López in three sets, being a set behind and saving a match point. It was the event's first time in which the final was decided with three tiebreakers, as well as being the longest ever Queen's final. Dimitrov also played inthe Queens doubles event, with partner world No. 3 Wawrinka (ranked outside the top 150 in the ATP doubles rankings), and in round one they beat local brother wildcard duo ofKen andNeal Skupski in straight sets, but then lost in a tight two-setter to third-seeded Canadian-Serbian veteran duo ofDaniel Nestor andNenad Zimonjić in the second round.
Next, Dimitrov played at the2014 Wimbledon Championships, where he was seeded 11th. In rounds one and two he beat two qualifiers —No. 150Ryan Harrison and No. 236Luke Saville, both in three sets. In round three, in what was his second victory against the Ukrainian out of three matches, he beat 21st seedAlexandr Dolgopolov in a five-set match, coming back from 2–1 sets down. Dimitrov followed that up with a straight sets victory over No. 64Leonardo Mayer in round four. In the quarterfinals, in what was his second victory against the Brit out of five matches, he beat defending Wimbledon champion and third seed Andy Murray 3–0 sets. This win meant Dimitrov reached his first Grand Slam semifinal, becoming the first male Bulgarian player to reach that stage. He was beaten in four sets by first seed No. 2, Novak Djokovic, who went on to win the tournament. This good performance also meant Dimitrov entered the top-10 ATP rankings for the first time – at No. 9 – becoming the first ever Bulgarian male tennis player to do so.[99]
In the end of July, Dimitrov was due to play at theWashington Open hardcourt event, where he was seeded third, but had to withdraw due to flu and sinus problems. In August, he played at theCanadian Open Masters, where he was seeded No. 7 and had a bye into the second round. In the second and third rounds Dimitrov beatDonald Young and 17th seed Tommy Robredo, both 2–1 sets. Then, in the quarterfinals, in what was his fifth victory against the South-African out of six matches between them, he beat No. 21, Kevin Anderson, 2–1 sets, coming back from a set down and winning the deciding set on a tiebreak. In the semifinals, he lost to 13th seed and eventual champion, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
Next, Dimitrov played at theCincinnati Masters. He was seeded seventh again and had a bye into the second round where he lost toJerzy Janowicz. At theUS Open, Dimitrov was seeded seventh. After Dimitrov defeatedRyan Harrison in the first round, Dudi Sela in the second, and David Goffin in the third, he lost to 20th seed Gaël Monfils in the round of 16 in three close sets, which dropped his tennis ranking to No. 10 after the tournament.
Along with Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, Dimitrov competed in the annual September China Open tournament in Beijing. After defeatingFernando Verdasco andPablo Andújar, Dimitrov lost to world No. 1 Djokovic in the quarterfinals. Dimitrov's next tournament was theShanghai Masters, where he was seeded 10th. After defeatingDenis Istomin in the first round, Dimitrov lost to the unseeded Julien Benneteau in the second round.
Dimitrov began the defense of his ATP maiden title inStockholm, winning his second- and third-round matches withTeymuraz Gabashvili andJack Sock.[100] He beatBernard Tomic in the semifinals, reaching his sixth career ATP World Tour singles final. Dimitrov lost the final toTomáš Berdych in three sets.[101]
InBasel, Dimitrov beat teenagerAlexander Zverev andVasek Pospisil in first and second rounds, before losing to top-seeded and eventual champion, Roger Federer, at the quarterfinals for a second year in a row. At theParis Masters, Dimitrov beatPablo Cuevas in the second round, but then lost to Andy Murray in the third. This was his last tournament for the year. Dimitrov had an opportunity to qualify for the2014 ATP World Tour Finals, but he finished 11th. On 22 December 2014, Dimitrov was chosen as theBulgarian Sportsperson of the Year (earning 1190 points), becoming the first tennis player to win the award.[102]
Dimitrov started the year ranked No. 11. In the beginning of January, he began his season at theBrisbane outdoor hard-court event, where he was seeded fourth and received a bye into the second round. There Dimitrov beatJérémy Chardy, coming back from a set down and winning the deciding set on a tiebreak. In the quarterfinals, he beatMartin Kližan in straight sets, but then lost to world No. 2 and eventual champion Roger Federer at the semifinals in less than an hour. Dimitrov also played in thedoubles event, paired with the Australian teenagerThanasi Kokkinakis, with whom he reached the semifinals.
At theAustralian Open, Dimitrov was seeded tenth. In the first round he overcame Dustin Brown in just 69 minutes, then in the second round he beatLukáš Lacko in four sets and Marcos Baghdatis in five sets in the third round. Dimitrov lost to sixth seed and eventual runner-up, Andy Murray, in the fourth round in four sets. In February, Dimitrov participated in theRotterdam Open indoor hard-court event, where he was seeded fifth. In the first round he beat the qualifierPaul-Henri Mathieu 2–1 sets, saving two match points in the second set, but then lost in straight sets to world No. 37, Gilles Müller, in the second round. Dimitrov played inAcapulco next, where he was the defending champion and seeded third. He lost in the second round toRyan Harrison. On 10 March 2015, Dimitrov played at an annual exhibition tournament inMadison Square Garden against Federer, defeating the Swiss star for the first time.[103]
In March Dimitrov played at theIndian Wells Masters, where he was seeded 11th and had a bye into the second round, where he beat in three sets the Australian teenager and world No. 37,Nick Kyrgios. Dimitrov lost to world No. 19, Tommy Robredo, in the third round. Dimitrov also played at the doubles event, paired withMardy Fish, but they lost in the first round to Spaniards David Ferrer and Fernando Verdasco. Dimitrov was seeded ninth at theMiami Masters and had a bye into the second round, where he beatVasek Pospisil, but then lost to the 22nd seedJohn Isner in the third round. Dimitrov began his clay season at theMonte-Carlo Masters. He was seeded ninth and beat Verdasco in the first round, and then defeated in straight sets Fabio Fognini in the second round. In the third round, Dimitrov crushed in less than an hour the seventh seed and defending champion Stan Wawrinka and then lost in straight sets to Gaël Monfils in the quarterfinals. Dimitrov also played in the doubles, paired withMax Mirnyi. They reached the second round, where they lost tothe Bryan brothers.
Dimitrov decided not to defend his title in Bucharest, and instead he participated in the first edition of theIstanbul event. He was seeded second and had a bye into the second round, where he defeatedAndrey Golubev. In the quarterfinals Dimitrov beat Ivan Dodig, but then lost toPablo Cuevas in the semifinals. Next, Dimitrov played at theMadrid Masters, where he was seeded tenth. His opponent in the first roundDonald Young retired, after Dimitrov was leading by a set and by 3–0 games in the second set. Then, Dimitrov beat Fabio Fognini, coming back from a set down, and overcame eighth seed Stan Wawrinka in three sets in the third round. At the quarterfinals, Dimitrov lost in straight sets to third seed and two-time defending champion Rafael Nadal, which was his sixth defeat out of six matches between them. Dimitrov also played in thedoubles and reached the second round.
Dimitrov was unable to defend his semifinal at theRome Masters in May. He was seeded 10th and beat in straight setsJerzy Janowicz in the first round, but then lost in three sets to Fabio Fognini, in what was the third match between them within a month. Next, Dimitrov lost in straight sets to Jack Sock at theFrench Open in the first round despite being seeded tenth. Dimitrov exited the tournament early for a second year in a row.
In June, Dimitrov failed to defend his title at theQueen's Club grass-court event, losing in the second round to Gilles Müller. Next, being seeded 11th, he played at theWimbledon Championships and in the first two-round eliminatedFederico Delbonis andSteve Johnson. Dimitrov lost in straight sets to Richard Gasquet in the third round, in what was his fifth defeat out of five matches against the Frenchman. Following that defeat, Dimitrov decided to part ways with coachRoger Rasheed.[104]
In July, he participated in the2015 Davis Cup against Luxembourg, winning all his matches. In August, he started his US Open Series campaign inWashington, reaching the third round. Then, he played at theRogers Cup, losing to Jack Sock in the second round. At theCincinnati Masters, Dimitrov was eliminated in the third round by the world No. 2, Andy Murray, having missed a match point in the third set. Dimitrov's weak performance continued at theUS Open, where he lost in five sets toMikhail Kukushkin in the second round.
In September, he hiredFranco Davín as his coach.[105] Dimitrov reached the quarterfinals inKuala Lumpur and then in the beginning of October had another first round exit inTokyo. After these tournament Dimitrov dropped out of top 20. After an unsuccessful Asia swing, Dimitrov traveled to Sweden to participate in theStockholm Open and reached the quarterfinals where he was defeated by Tomáš Berdych in straight sets. Following that tournament, he traveled to Basel for theSwiss Indoors where he lost to Rafael Nadal in three sets in the round of 16. His last tournament for the year wasParis, where Dimitrov managed to eliminate Marin Čilić, before losing to Ferrer. He did not qualify for theATP World Tour Finals.
Ranked world No. 28, Dimitrov began the season inBrisbane, where he reached the quarterfinals, losing to Federer. Paired with Kei Nishikori, Dimitrov also reached the semifinals in the doubles, but withdrew due to shoulder soreness. The Bulgarian reached his seventh career final inSydney, losing to the defending championViktor Troicki in three sets and a tie-break in the third set. Next, Dimitrov recorded another defeat to Federer, his fifth overall between the two, in the third round of theAustralian Open.
In February, Dimitrov decided to skip the first edition ofSofia Open in his homeland and participated in theDelray Beach event, where he lost to the unseededRajeev Ram in the semifinals. Next, Dimitrov lost to the in-form and eventual championDominic Thiem at the quarterfinals inAcapulco.
In March, seeded 23rd, Dimitrov had a bye into the second round ofIndian Wells, but was upset by the German teenager Alexander Zverev. Dimitrov also had a bye into the second round of theMiami Open. In the third round, he overcame the world No. 2, Andy Murray, coming back from a set down, but then lost to Gaël Monfils.
In April, Dimitrov began his clay-court season. He reached the second round of theMonte-Carlo Masters, losing to the 15th seed Gilles Simon in straight sets. Seeded 2nd, Dimitrov reached his eighth career final in theIstanbul event, beating third seed, Ivo Karlović at the semifinals in two tie-breaks. In the final, against the unseededDiego Schwartzman, Dimitrov was serving for the match in the second set, but started cramping and then had a complete meltdown. After smashing two rackets, and being warned and penalized, Dimitrov smashed a third racket in the third set, which resulted in a match-ending penalty.[106][107]
At theMadrid Masters, Dimitrov was unable to defend his quarterfinal from the previous year, suffering a first round exit in straight sets toPablo Carreño, not having lost even a set to the Spaniard prior to that match. In the following week, Dimitrov's position in the ATP ranking deteriorated further to No.35, a three-year low. The Bulgarian was then beaten again by Alexander Zverev in first round of theRome Masters. This was followed by another first round loss at theFrench Open to Viktor Troicki, this time in five sets.
In June, Dimitrov's downfall continued, as he played on grass courts inStuttgart and inLondon, losing once again in the first rounds to the wildcardJuan Martín del Potro in straight sets, and to the returning from injuryJanko Tipsarević, respectively. Being unseeded at a Major for the first time since2013, Dimitrov ended his losing streak at the2016 Wimbledon, first beating qualifierBjorn Fratangelo and then 16th seed Gilles Simon, before losing toSteve Johnson. Soon after that, Dimitrov revealed that prior to Wimbledon he had split with his coach Franco Davín.[108] The Bulgarian hiredDaniel Vallverdu as coach.[109]
In July, Dimitrov was seeded 12th inWashington Open and had a bye into the second round, but had another disappointment, as he lost in straight sets to No. 82,Daniel Evans. AtRogers Cup, Dimitrov survived another early elimination againstYūichi Sugita in the first round, coming back from a set down and facing 2–5 in the second set tiebreak. That was followed by an easy win against wildcardDenis Shapovalov and then Dimitrov beat Ivo Karlović in straight sets in the third round. The Bulgarian lost in three sets to third seed Nishikori in the quarterfinals. Paired with Wawrinka, he beat Lucas Pouille and Dominic Thiem in thedoubles, before losing toHenri Kontinen andJohn Peers.
Dimitrov participated in the2016 Summer Olympics in the first half of August, but lost in the first round to ninth seed Marin Čilić. The Bulgarian then had a good run inCincinnati, reaching his third career Masters semifinal. He subsequently beat in straight setsGilles Simon in the first round and then came back from a set to down to eliminate 16th seed, Feliciano López. In the third round Dimitrov won against second seed Wawrinka and then beat Steve Johnson in the quarterfinals, both in straight sets. In the semifinal he was stopped again by the eventual champion Marin Čilić, after allowing re-breaks twice in the third set. With his performance, the Bulgarian secured the second spot in the2016 US Open Series standings. In the following week, Dimitrov returned in top 30 of ATP ranking, jumping ten positions to No. 24 spot.
Seeded 22nd, Dimitrov played in the2016 US Open and reached the fourth round for a second time in his career after beating en routeÍñigo Cervantes, Jérémy Chardy andJoão Sousa before losing in straight sets to second seed, Andy Murray, who allowed Dimitrov only five games in total.
Dimitrov moved to Asia to play in the inauguralChengdu Open. He was seeded third and reached the semifinals, where he lost to fifth seedAlbert Ramos Viñolas. The Bulgarian then went to the final of theBeijing event, beating Steve Johnson, sixth seed Lucas Pouille and gaining first victory over Rafael Nadal, who was ranked No. 4 at the moment. At the semifinals, the third seed,Milos Raonic, withdrew prior to the match with Dimitrov due to ankle injury. Dimitrov lost the final to No. 2, Andy Murray, in two tight sets. The Bulgarian then participated in theShanghai Masters, where in the first round he overcame in straight sets 14th seed, Richard Gasquet, to whom Dimitrov had had a negative record of 0–5 losses, but in the second lost to qualifierVasek Pospisil, who had never beaten Dimitrov.
The Bulgarian returned to Europe and reached the semifinals inStockholm, where he was stopped by the eventual champion Juan Martín del Potro. Dimitrov then played inBasel, but exited the event with a first round loss against Gilles Müller. In his last tournament for the season, theParis Masters, Dimitrov lost in three sets to No. 1, Novak Djokovic, in the third round.
Ranked world No. 17, Dimitrov had a flying start to the season inBrisbane, reaching the final by defeating world No. 8, Dominic Thiem in the quarterfinals and then No. 3 and defending champion Milos Raonic in the semifinals. In the final he overcame world No. 5, Kei Nishikori, in three sets, winning his first ATP title in nearly three years, his last having been at Queen's Club in 2014. Dimitrov next moved on to play in the2017 Australian Open, where he extended his winning streak further, reaching the semifinals. Dimitrov beat 18th seed, Richard Gasquet, in the third round and 11th seed David Goffin in the quarterfinals, before being eliminated by Rafael Nadal in a five-set thriller, which lasted almost five hours, with Dimitrov failing to convert double break points in the fifth set when the score was 4–3 for Dimitrov.[110] The match with Nadal was later cited among the top 3 of best Grand Slam matches in 2017.[111][112]
In February, Dimitrov competed in theSofia Open, where he was seeded third. The Bulgarian maintained his excellent start to the season, winning his second title of the year on home soil, defeating second seed, David Goffin, in straight sets in the final.[113] However, the Belgian managed to grab his first victory over Dimitrov, eliminating him in three sets in the quarterfinals of theRotterdam Open.
In March, Dimitrov played in theIndian Wells Masters, losing in three sets to Jack Sock in the third round, after missing four match points.[114] The Bulgarian then participated in theMiami Open, but was upset by unseededGuido Pella in the second round.
Dimitrov began his clay-court season with a loss toTommy Robredo in the second round of theGrand Prix Hassan II tournament, for which he received a wildcard and was the top seed. This was followed by another upset at theMonte-Carlo Masters, where Dimitrov was seeded eighth and had a bye into the second round, but lost to qualifierJan-Lennard Struff.
The Bulgarian ended his losing streak in theMadrid Masters, reaching the third round, where he was eliminated by Dominic Thiem in three tight sets after missing five match points in the third-set tiebreak.[115] Next, Dimitrov had a first-round exit in theRome Masters, being defeated byJuan Martín del Potro in three sets. This was the fifth loss to the Argentine in five meetings. Dimitrov then went to the third round of theFrench Open, where he lost toPablo Carreño Busta.
Dimitrov started on grass court inStuttgart. He was seeded second, but lost in his first match. The Bulgarian then had a good run at theQueen's Club event, where he reached the semifinals. Dimitrov lost in three sets to in-form eventual champion Feliciano López. Without dropping a set, the Bulgarian reached the fourth round atWimbledon, but then lost in straight sets to eventual champion Roger Federer in what was his sixth defeat in six official matches with the Swiss. Dimitrov returned to the top ten for the first time since February 2015 at the conclusion of the tournament.[116]
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Dimitrov returned to hard courts in August. After reaching third rounds at theWashington Open and theRogers Cup in Montreal, the Bulgarian won his first Masters 1000 title inCincinnati, defeating Nick Kyrgios in the final in straight sets, winning the tournament without losing a set. Dimitrov then reached the second round of theUS Open, where he lost to teenagerAndrey Rublev.
In the beginning of October, Dimitrov reached the semifinals inBeijing after wins over Juan Martín del Potro and Roberto Bautista Agut, and then the quarterfinals of theShanghai Masters. In both events the Bulgarian was eliminated by world No. 1, Rafael Nadal, in three-setters.[117] Dimitrov then advanced to the final of theStockholm Open with wins over Jerzy Janowicz, Mischa Zverev and Fabio Fognini but lost to US Open semifinalist del Potro in straight sets. This was Dimitrov's third final in Stockholm. In the following week, Dimitrov was confirmed to participate for the first time at theATP Finals, thus becoming the first Bulgarian to qualify for the season-ending championships.[118]
Afterwards, he decided to skip theVienna Open (despite being given a wildcard) due to fatigue, and to prepare for theParis Masters the following week, where Dimitrov grabbed third victory in a row over Richard Gasquet before losing in the third round to big servingJohn Isner in three sets. On the following week, prior to the ATP Finals, Dimitrov achieved a new career high, climbing to world No. 6 position.
Dimitrov was drawn in thePete Sampras group of the2017 ATP Finals, together with Rafael Nadal, Dominic Thiem and David Goffin. Playing with Thiem in his debut match, Dimitrov clinched a maiden victory in the ATP Finals in a tight three-setter.[119] The Bulgarian then routed Goffin, allowing only two games to his opponent. With this win Dimitrov won the first place in the group and secured his place at the semi-finals.[120] Dimitrov stayed perfect in the group after another convincing victory, this time against alternatePablo Carreño Busta.[121] The Bulgarian came back from a set down to ultimately eliminate in-formJack Sock in the semi-finals.[122]Dimitrov won the biggest title of his career by defeating once again David Goffin in three tight sets in the final. He finished the tournament as an undefeated champion, receiving a prize of $2,549,000 and 1,500 ranking points, the latter helped him finish 2017 at a career-high world No. 3 (only behind Nadal and Federer).[123]
Dimitrov ended his 2017 season with these significant milestones [current figure in brackets]: (1)first Masters 1000 title (2)first ATP Finals crown, (3)5 Tour finals, (4)four tour titles, (5)eight top-10 match wins [had 13 total prior to 2017], (6) 250 career match wins[257 match wins], (7) cracked $10,000,000 in career earnings[$13,103,976], (8) cracked $5,000,000 in a single season[$5,628,512], (9)second Grand Slam semifinal, (10)first Grand Slam semifinal on hard courts.
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Dimitrov started his 2018 campaign inBrisbane, where he was the defending champion and top seed. He started from the second round with hard three set win against the home favourite and wild cardJohn Millman, then overcame with another three setter the British number twoKyle Edmund. Dimitrov was eliminated in the semi-finals by the third seed and eventual champion Nick Kyrgios. The Bulgarian played in the doubles as well. Paired withRyan Harrison, he reached the semifinals, before withdrawing.Having started his campaign atAustralian Open with a couple of wins against qualifiers Dennis Novak and Mackenzie McDonald, Dimitrov was drawn against Andrey Rublev who had knocked him out in the second round of US Open several months before and took revenge, eliminating the 30th seeded Russian. Dimitrov then edged in form Nick Kyrgios in tight four sets to qualify for his third Australian Open quarter-final, where he lost to Kyle Edmund in four sets.[124] In the following week Dimitrov stated that he had played the last matches with a shoulder injury. Failing to recover, the Bulgarian withdrew from theSofia Open, where he was defending champion.
In February, Dimitrov reached the final of theRotterdam Open without dropping a set, defeatingYūichi Sugita,Filip Krajinović, Andrey Rublev, and David Goffin en route, but eventually lost to Roger Federer, who would regain world No. 1 ranking after the tournament.[125] Next, Dimitrov played inDubai, where he was top seed, but was upset in the first round byMalek Jaziri.
In March, Dimitrov was third seed at both theIndian Wells andMiami Masters, but faced early eliminations by Fernando Verdasco in the second round and byJérémy Chardy in the third round, respectively.
Dimitrov rebounded on the next tournament, theMonte-Carlo Masters, advancing to the semi-finals of the clay event after beating No. 10 David Goffin in the quarter-finals. Dimitrov ultimately lost to world No. 1 Rafael Nadal.[126] That was followed by a quarter-final inBarcelona, where Dimitrov lost to Pablo Carreño Busta. After the match ending handshake, Dimitrov accused Carreño Busta of stopping the point in the second set tie-break, which led to an unforced error by the Bulgarian. Carreño Busta denied the accusations.[127]
In May, Dimitrov lost in the second rounds of theMadrid andRome Masters to Milos Raonic and Kei Nishikori, respectively. Dimitrov then lost in straight sets to Fernando Verdasco in the third round of theFrench Open.
Dimitrov had his worst grass-court season since 2010, having recorded early losses to Novak Djokovic at theQueen's Club tournament and to Stan Wawrinka at theWimbledon Championships. The second of the defeats came in the first round of the Grand Slam event.
Dimitrov next played in August at theToronto Masters, where he reached the quarterfinals, losing to Kevin Anderson. Dimitrov then failed to defend his Masters title inCincinnati after he was beaten in the third round by the eventual champion Novak Djokovic in a tight three-setter. As a result, Dimitrov's ranking dropped to world No. 8. That was followed by first round elimination at the2018 US Open, with Dimitrov losing to Stan Wawrinka in straights.
Dimitrov contributed to Team Europe for winning the second edition of theLaver Cup. However his struggles with form continued after early exits at the China Open and in Vienna, losing to unseededDušan Lajović and Mikhail Kukushkin, respectively. Dimitrov's season ended after the Paris Masters, where he lost to fifth seed, Marin Čilić in the third round. Dimitrov didn't qualify for the ATP Finals, where he was the defending champion. Former world No. 1,Andre Agassi, joined Dimitrov's team prior to the Paris Masters.[128]
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Dimitrov started his campaign in Brisbane where he defeatedYoshihito Nishioka andJohn Millman in straight sets before losing to eventual champion Kei Nishikori in the quarterfinals.[129] In January, Dimitrov reached the last 16 of the2019 Australian Open, but was knocked out byFrances Tiafoe in four sets.
Having suffered from a shoulder injury, Dimitrov returned to play in theMiami Masters, reaching the third round. Dimitrov then started his clay court campaign at theMonte-Carlo Masters, where he lost to Rafael Nadal in the third round. Dimitrov then went to the third round ofBarcelona Open. His ranking deteriorated to No. 49, the lowest since 2012. At theFrench Open, Dimitrov upset Marin Čilić in the second round but was subsequently eliminated by Stan Wawrinka in straight sets.[130] Dimitrov had a disappointingWimbledon, losing toCorentin Moutet in five sets in the first round, despite being up two sets.
Dimitrov's hard court season started off poorly. He lost in the first round of theAtlanta Open to world No. 405Kevin King, who had never won a main-draw match on the ATP Tour.[131][132] Dimitrov then lost to Stan Wawrinka in the first rounds of both theRogers Cup and theWestern & Southern Open. Following this, Dimitrov had lost seven of his past eight matches, and his ranking had slipped to No. 78, his lowest ranking in over seven years.
At theUS Open, Dimitrov was unseeded. He defeatedAndreas Seppi in the first round before receiving a walkover over 12th seedBorna Ćorić. He then defeated lucky loserKamil Majchrzak andAlex de Minaur in straight sets to reach the quarterfinals. There, he faced third seed Roger Federer. In a lengthy five-set match, Dimitrov upset Federer to reach his first Grand Slam semifinal since the 2017 Australian Open. This was also his first career win against Federer, having been defeated on seven previous occasions. He then lost toDaniil Medvedev in the semifinals. As a result of this run, Dimitrov rose 53 ranking places in a single tournament, appearing at World No. 25 the next week.
Dimitrov failed to proceed beyond the second round atChengdu,Beijing,Stockholm, andVienna. At theParis Masters, he defeatedUgo Humbert and 12th seed David Goffin to reach the third round, where he defeated the fifth seed Dominic Thiem. In the quarterfinals, he defeatedCristian Garín, before losing to Djokovic in straight sets in the semifinals.
In January, Dimitrov participated and led as captain the Bulgarian team in the inaugural2020 ATP Cup where the top 24 countries qualified based on the singles ATP ranking of their No. 1 country player.[133] The Bulgarian team was No. 19 based on Dimitrov's ranking and part of Group C where Dimitrov won both his single matches against the top players of Great Britain, Dan Evans, and Moldova,Radu Albot.[134] He pulled a victory in doubles where as the underdogs he and teammateAlexandar Lazarov stunned the top British experienced pair ofJamie Murray/Joe Salisbury in a close three sets match.[135][136]
In October, Dimitrov reached the fourth round of theFrench Open for the first time, defeatingRoberto Carballés Baena, where he lost toStefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets.[137][138]
He finished the year in the top 20 for the fifth year in a row, ranked world No. 19.
In February, Dimitrov seeded 18th reached his fourth quarterfinal at theAustralian Open, defeating former Grand Slam champion Marin Čilić in the first round,Alex Bolt, 15th seed Pablo Carreño Busta by retirement and third seed and the previous year's runner-up Dominic Thiem in the fourth round, before losing to qualifierAslan Karatsev after suffering from back spasms.[139]
Dimitrov retired in the first round of theFrench Open againstMarcos Giron for the same reasons as a result of his back problems, after failing to convert three match points in the third set.[140] Seeded 18th at the2021 Wimbledon Championships, he lost toAlexander Bublik in the second round in three straight sets with two tiebreaks after Bublik hit 34 aces against Dimitrov.[141][142] He took his revenge by defeating Bublik at the2021 Western & Southern Open Masters in Cincinnati to reach the round of 16. He lost to Daniil Medvedev in straight sets.[143] At theUS Open, he retired with a foot injury after losing the first two sets toAlexei Popyrin in the second round.[144] He dropped out of the top 25, since he could not defend his points from the 2019 US Open semifinal, to No. 29 on 13 September 2021.
In late September, Dimitrov recorded his first win over Márton Fucsovics in three ATP head-to-head meetings at the2021 San Diego Open to reach the second round.[145] He then won in the second round defeating ATP Tour debutant and lucky loserAugust Holmgren (tennis), afterFélix Auger-Aliassime withdrawal, in straight sets 6–1, 6–1 in a 56 minutes match to reach his fifth quarterfinal of the season.[146][147] He reached his first semifinal of the year defeating Aslan Karatsev in three sets and taking his revenge for his earlier in the year loss at the AO.[148] In the semifinals, he lost to eventual championCasper Ruud.[149]
AtIndian Wells, Dimitrov reached the round of 16 for the first time in his career, defeating en route qualifierDaniel Altmaier and then-world No. 20 and 16th seedReilly Opelka in straight sets with no breaks, taking his revenge for his earlier in the year loss to the American at theCanadian Open.[150][151] In the fourth round, Dimitrov defeated world No. 2 and top seed Daniil Medvedev 4–6, 6–4, 6–3 to reach the quarterfinals. He came back from a set and a double-break down at 4–6, 1–4 to eliminate the reigningUS Open champion and earn his first win over a top 2 opponent since 2016.[152] In the quarterfinals, he defeated eighth seedHubert Hurkacz rallying again from a set down to reach the semifinals for the first time in his career at this Masters.[153] He then lost to Cameron Norrie in the semi-finals.
At theParis Masters, he defeated wildcard Richard Gasquet and 2018 champion Karen Khachanov in the second round, with the last set being 6–0. He lost to fourth seed Alexander Zverev in the round of 16.
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The season for Dimitrov began at theMelbourne Summer Set tournament, where he reached the semifinals, before losing to qualifierMaxime Cressy. Next, he participated in theAustralian Open but he lost in the second round toBenoît Paire.[154]At the2022 Delray Beach Open following his second round win overMitchell Krueger,[155] Dimitrov became only the second man born in the ‘90s or later to reach 350 career wins, after Milos Raonic. He was the 130th man in the Open Era and the 22nd active player to do it.[156]
In March, Dimitrov reached the quarterfinals of theIndian Wells Masters before losing to seventh seed Andrey Rublev in straight sets. At theMonte-Carlo Masters, he reached the semifinals with an upset against fourth seed Casper Ruud[157] and again 11th seedHubert Hurkacz.[158] At theFrench Open, he lost in the third round to 15th seedDiego Schwartzman in straight sets, whom Dimitrov defeated also in straight sets at theMadrid Open.[159] AtWimbledon, he retired in the first round againstSteve Johnson.
At theCanadian Open, he reached the second round in singles and in doubles with Andrey Rublev defeating Canadian wildcard debutantAlexis Galarneau and Wimbledon doubles champions Ebden/Purcell respectively.[160] The pair also reached the second round of the2022 Western & Southern Open defeating Dan Evans andJohn Peers.[161] Following two straight first-round losses at the2022 Sofia Open and the2022 Stockholm Open, he won his opening match at the2022 Erste Bank Open in Vienna againstThiago Monteiro.[162] Next he defeated world No. 8 and third seed Andrey Rublev (his 30th top-10 win) to reach the quarterfinals[163][164] andMarcos Giron to reach his third semifinal of the season. He lost to world No. 4 and top seed eventual champion, Daniil Medvedev, in straight sets.[165] At the2022 Rolex Paris Masters he reached the third round defeatingBotic van de Zandschulp, lucky loser Fabio Fognini, before losing to world No. 1,Carlos Alcaraz, to end his season.[166][167]
He finished the year in the top 30 for the tenth year in a row, ranked world No. 28 on 21 November 2022. Based on this ranking, being the Bulgarian male player No. 1, he was confirmed two days later as a participant at the2023 United Cup as part of the Bulgarian team.[168][169]
Dimitrov reached the third round at the2023 Australian Open defeating Aslan Karatsev andLaslo Djere before losing in straight sets to eventual champion Novak Djokovic, who went on to win his 10th Australian Open and 22nd Grand Slam.[170]
At theRotterdam Open, he defeated again Karatsev in 59 minutes to reach the second round.[171] Next he defeated world No. 10 and fifth seed Hubert Hurkacz in straight sets to reach the quarterfinals. He reached his 43rd career semifinal defeating Alex de Minaur in three sets and first since 2018 at this tournament.[172][173][174] As a result, he returned to the top 25 in the rankings. He lost to world No. 11 and sixth seedDaniil Medvedev in straight sets.[175]
At the2023 BNP Paribas Open, he lost in the second round (having received a bye) toJason Kubler after retirement with a right-knee injury in the third set.[176] InMiami he won his second round match against qualifierJan-Lennard Struff.
InMonte-Carlo, he won in the first round overBen Shelton[177] before losing toJiří Lehečka.[178] As a result, he dropped outside of the top 30 on 17 April 2023 in the rankings being unable to defend his semifinal points from the previous year. InMadrid he defeatedGrégoire Barrère in the second round before losing to top seed Carlos Alcaraz. InRome, he defeated Stan Wawrinka in the second round,[179] before also losing to the top seed, world No. 1 Novak Djokovic.
InGeneva, he won his first two rounds matches againstRoberto Carballés Baena andChristopher O'Connell to reach the semifinals.[180] He reached his first final since 2018 defeating second seed and top-10 playerTaylor Fritz[181] before losing in the final toNicolás Jarry.[182] Dimitrov reached the fourth round atRoland Garros for the second time at this major, defeating qualifierTimofey Skatov,Emil Ruusuvuori and Daniel Altmaier without losing a set.[183] He lost to 22nd seedAlexander Zverev in straight sets.
He qualified for the main draw at the2023 Queen's Club Championships and reached the quarterfinals also without dropping a set, defeating eight seedFrancisco Cerundolo.[184] He lost to top seed and world No. 2, Carlos Alcaraz, in straight sets.[185] His good form continued at the2023 Wimbledon Championships reaching the fourth round without losing a set, defeating top 10 player Frances Tiafoe, before losing to world No. 6,Holger Rune. He returned to the top 20 on 24 July 2023.
In the beginning of the North American Summer swing, seeded fifth, he reached the semifinals at theWashington Open[186] after a walkover fromUgo Humbert, before losing to eventual champion Dan Evans.[187] At theUS Open he reached the second round, defeatingAlex Molcan after coming from a two sets to love down deficit for the first time in his career, saving three match balls, in five sets with three tiebreaks, in a match lasting close to 4 hours and 40 minutes, the longest of the day.[188][189][190] Next he reached the third round defeating Andy Murray, before losing to Alexander Zverev, his third straight loss to the German in the season.[191]
He recorded his 400th career win at the2023 Chengdu Open defeatingJuan Pablo Varillas becoming the first man born in the 1990 or later to hit that milestone and the tenth active men's player.[192][193][194][195] He reached the semifinals defeating Christopher O'Connell.[196] He lost to Alexander Zverev for a seventh consecutive time (fourth straight season loss), in straight sets. In the next tournament, theChina Open of the Asian swing, he came back from a 2–6, 1–5 deficit, for a second time in the season, and won his first-round match against wildcardMackenzie McDonald.[197] Next, he defeated third seed Holger Rune for his fourth top 10 win (the most since the 2017 season), to reach the quarterfinals of this tournament for the fourth time in eight appearances.[198]
AtShanghai, he reached the fourth round defeating 13th seedKaren Khachanov.[199] Next he defeated world No. 2 and top seed Carlos Alcaraz to reach the quarterfinals of a Masters 1000 for the first time in the season and only the second time at this Masters.[200][201] He defeated Nicolás Jarry and reached his first Masters semifinal since the 2022 Monte-Carlo Masters.[202][203] He lost to sixth seed Andrey Rublev.[204] He continued his good form on the European indoor hardcourts inVienna and defeatedLorenzo Musetti in straight sets in the first round but lost to top seed Daniil Medvedev in the second in three sets.[205] At the next Masters inParis he reached again the round of 16 defeating world No. 3 Medvedev this time, winning at the seventh match point, his third top-5 win within a month[206] and sixth top-10 of the season, tied together with Alex de Minaur.[207] Next, he defeated Alexander Bublik in straight sets to reach back-to-back quarterfinals at a Masters level.[208] He reached his second, consecutive Masters semifinal for the season defeating 11th seed Hubert Hurkacz for his 40th win.[209] Next he defeated seventh seed Stefanos Tsitsipas and reached his first Masters final since 2017, where he lost to Novak Djokovic. As a result, he returned to the top 15, at world No. 14 on 6 November 2023.
Starting the season atBrisbane,[210][211] he reached his third final at the tournament and 18th in his career overall defeating Andy Murray, Daniel Altmaier, wildcardRinky Hijikata andJordan Thompson.[212] He defeated top seedHolger Rune in the final to win his ninth title and first since 2017.[213][214] With the title win, he recorded more match wins (23) than any other player at this tournament. As a result, he moved to No. 13 in the singles rankings on 8 January 2024, his highest since 2018.[215]
Seeded 13th at the2024 Australian Open where he made his record 52nd consecutive major appearance, he reached the second round with a win over Marton Fucsovics, and then won over Kokkinakis in the second round, but lost in the third round toNuno Borges.[216][217]
He reached his second final of the season inMarseille defeatingSebastian Korda,Arthur Rinderknech[218][219] and Karen Khachanov.[220] In the final he lost to fourth seed Ugo Humbert.[221]He reached back to back semifinals at theRotterdam Open, defeatingLorenzo Sonego, again Marton Fucsovics andAlexander Shevchenko. He lost in the semifinals to Alex de Minaur,[222] ending the week with the most ATP singles wins, at 13, since the beginning of the season.
InIndian Wells, he reached the fourth round defeating two FrenchmenAlexandre Müller and 21st seedAdrian Mannarino. As a result, he returned to his highest ranking of world No. 12 on 18 March 2024 for the first time since 29 October 2018 when he was ranked at No. 10.[223] Seeded 11th at the2024 Miami Open, he reached the fourth round defeatingAlejandro Tabilo in three sets[224] andYannick Hanfmann in a 46 minutes match, conceding one game.[225] He won his next match against world No. 9 and eight seedHubert Hurkacz and thus completed the full career set of quarterfinal showings at all nine active Masters events becoming the ninth active man to accomplish this feat after Nadal, Djokovic, Murray, Monfils, Čilić, Thiem, Tsitsipas and Zverev.[226] With making his 19th Masters quarterfinal in Miami, he reached that stage or higher of at least one Masters event every season for 12 years in a row since 2013.[227][228] With his 40th top 10 win over world No. 2 and top seed Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals, he reached the semifinals of all Masters with the exception of the Madrid Open. He became just the third man born in 1990 or later to record 40 or more Top 10 wins afterAlexander Zverev andDaniil Medvedev and the eight active player overall.[229][230][231] Dimitrov reached his third Masters final defeating back to back top 5 players (last time was in Brisbane 2017), for his first win against fourth seed Alexander Zverev in 10 years, and 20th overall against the top 5. He returned for the first time in 260 weeks (3rd longest gap in the Open Era) since November 2018 to the top 10 at world No. 9 in the rankings.[232][233] In the final, he lost in straight sets to world No. 3 and second seedJannik Sinner.[234]
At the2024 Monte-Carlo Masters, he played the longest best-of-three match in the tournament history lasting 3 and half hours before succumbing to seventh seedHolger Rune in the round of 16. It was also the third-longest match of any kind at this Masters 1000.[235] At the2024 Italian Open he reached again the round of 16, for the first time since 2020 at this Masters, defeating two leftiesYoshihito Nishioka and qualifierTérence Atmane.[236] In the fourth round, he lost to 11th seedTaylor Fritz in three sets.[237]
With his win in the round of 16 over Hubert Hurkacz at the2024 French Open, Dimitrov became the second player born in the 1990s, after Daniil Medvedev, to complete the career set of both Grand Slam and Masters 1000 quarterfinals and the sixth active player overall to accomplish the feat (after Djokovic, Nadal, Murray, Marin Čilić and Medvedev).[5][238][239]
At the2024 Wimbledon Championships, he came back from two sets to love deficit for the second time in his career, defeatingShang Juncheng to reach the third round. It was the ninth overall comeback from two sets down in a single edition of the All England Club, tying the record (with 1974, 1990 and 1997) for most comebacks at the tournament in theOpen Era.[240]
At theUS Open, he reached again the round of 16 for a third Grand Slam in a row in the season, with straight sets wins over qualifierKyrian Jacquet,Rinky Hijikata andTallon Griekspoor, not facing a break point in the last match.[241] He defeated sixth seedAndrey Rublev in five sets, his 450th career win, to reach his second quarterfinal at this Grand Slam and eight overall. He became the first player born in the 1990s to reach 300 hardcourt wins.[242]
He was selected as part of the winning team Europe for a second time at the2024 Laver Cup.[243][244] At the2024 Shanghai Masters, Dimitrov recorded his 40th win for the season defeating 20th seedAlexei Popyrin, to reach the round of 16. It was his second consecutive season where he recorded 40+ wins.[245] With reaching the semifinals at the2024 Stockholm Open, he recorded his 100th indoor win overDominic Stricker, becoming the first man born in the 1990 or later to accomplish the feat.[246] Dimitrov reached his 21st ATP career final, fourth of the season, and third at the tournament, defeating seventh seedTallon Griekspoor in three sets.[247][248] At the2024 Rolex Paris Masters where he was a previous year runner-up, Dimitrov made his 20th Masters quarterfinal of his career, keeping his chances alive to qualify for the ATP Finals in Turin in November.[249][250][251][252] Dimitrov moved ahead ofRoger Federer and tied withPete Sampras andMarat Safin for fourth all-time record wins at the tournament with 24.[253] He lost to Karen Khachanov in straight sets.[254]
With his first round win overYannick Hanfmann at theBrisbane International, Dimitrov became the player with the most wins in the tournament history, with a win-loss record of 24-6, surpassing fellow two-time titlistAndy Murray.[255] He then defeated home favoriteAleksandar Vukic to reach the quarterfinals, his record breaking 25th win at the event.[256] He moved pastJordan Thompson to move to the semifinals after Thompson retired mid-match.[257] Dimitrov would go onto retire from his semifinal match againstJiri Lehecka, ending his title defence.[258] At theAustralian Open, he was drawn againstFabio Fognini, who would eventually withdraw from the tournament before the match. Dimitrov facedFrancesco Passaro and retired from his match during the second set.[259] InDoha, Dimitrov facedLehecka again, this time losing in straight sets to the Czech.[260] In Dubai, he retired after losing the first set againstChristopher O'Connell.[261]
InIndian Wells, Dimitrov played a marathon match against the 38-year-oldGaël Monfils, battling a thumb injury in the process, to make the round of 16.[262] He lost to eventual semifinalistCarlos Alcaraz.[263] At theMiami Open where he wasdefending runner-up points from 2024, Dimitrov reached the quarterfinals with wins over 22nd seedKaren Khachanov and 31st seedBrandon Nakashima.[264] He reached consecutive semifinals at the tournament defeating 23rd seedFrancisco Cerúndolo after nearly three hours, in three sets, while saving a match point in the process.[265] He lost to the eventual finalist,Novak Djokovic, in their first match since their Masters 1000 final inParis.[266] As he was unable to defend his finalist points, he dropped to a ranking of world No. 18.
During the spring clay season, Dimitrov reached the quarterfinals inMonte-Carlo, the fourth round inMadrid, and the second round inRome. He lost in straight sets without winning a single game in his quarterfinal match in Monte-Carlo againstAlex de Minaur, in a deciding set againstGabriel Diallo in Madrid, and toFrancesco Passaro in straight sets in Rome.[267][268][269] At theFrench Open, despite leading two sets to one againstEthan Quinn, Dimitrov retired from his first round match, marking his 4th consecutive Grand Slam tournament in which he retired from his match.[270]
In the summer, Dimitrov withdrew from theQueen's Club Championships due to injury.[271] AtWimbledon, he won his first match against Yoshihito Nishioka in straight sets to record his first match win at the majors of the year. He later defeatedCorentin Moutet in the second round, and won againstSebastian Ofner in straight sets during the third, marking his 100th career Grand Slam win.[272] He faced world No. 1Jannik Sinner in the fourth round, and although Dimitrov won the first two sets, he suffered a suddenpectoral injury in the third set and was forced to retire at his fifth consecutive Grand Slam.[273] As a result Dimitrov skipped Bastad and eventually the entire North American Summer tournaments including theUS Open.[274][275]
Dimitrov made hisDavis Cup debut forBulgaria in 2008 as a 16-year-old. Playing in front of a home crowd inPlovdiv, the teenage Dimitrov compiled an undefeated record in both singles and doubles to promote his country into the second division of the Europe/Africa zone. A 17-year-old Dimitrov returned to the Bulgarian Davis Cup team for the first round of the Davis Cup Europe/Africa zone in 2009. Dimitrov was victorious in both his singles rubbers which led to a narrow 3–2 victory overHungary. He would then take a few breaks from Davis Cup which would result in Bulgaria being relegated back to the lowest division of Davis Cup.
Dimitrov would return to Davis Cup competition in 2012 as a top 100 player. The Bulgarians breezed through the round-robin tournament held in their home city of Sofia and would once again be promoted to the second division of the Europe/Africa zone. Dimitrov and the Bulgarian Davis Cup team have been unable to advance past the first round since being promoted but have been victorious in their two relegation ties.
Dimitrov representedBulgaria at his maiden Olympics in2012 London. He competed in the singles competition and advanced past the first round with a straight sets victory over Poland'sŁukasz Kubot. He was then beaten by France's 12th seedGilles Simon. Dimitrov made his second Olympic appearance in2016 Rio where he was beaten in the first round of the singles competition by CroatianMarin Čilić.
Dimitrov skipped the2020 Tokyo Olympics and registered to play at the ATP 250 tournament in Atlanta instead but later withdrew, as he did not meet the minimalqualifications requirements due to non-representation in the Davis Cup.[276]
As a child, Dimitrov was coached by his father, Dimitar, at Tennis Club Haskovo. As his talent became more apparent he started to receive coaching from abroad, most notably from Spaniard Pato Alvarez, who has also coached Britain'sAndy Murray. Alvarez has reportedly said that Dimitrov is the best 17 year old he has coached. Around the time of his success at the2009 Rotterdam Open, Dimitrov formally began a coaching relationship withPeter Lundgren, former coach of world No. 1sMarat Safin andRoger Federer. Lundgren has also been quick to praise Dimitrov, saying that "he is better than Federer was at his age."[277]
In June 2010, Dimitrov ended his coaching relationship with Lundgren and was subsequently coached by Australian proPeter McNamara.[278] Dimitrov and McNamara have ended their coaching relationship at the end of the 2011 season. In 2012, Dimitrov was coached byPatrick Mouratoglou in an attempt to revive his fortunes.[279] On 26 November 2012, Dimitrov left the Patrick Mouratoglou Academy and joined theGood to Great Tennis Academy in Sweden, which is run by ex-touring prosMagnus Norman,Nicklas Kulti, andMikael Tillström.
On 7 October 2013, Dimitrov announced on his Facebook page that he has hiredRoger Rasheed (former coach of Gaël Monfils, Jo-Wilifred Tsonga and Lleyton Hewitt) to be his new coach.[280] On 7 July 2015 Dimitrov announced via Twitter that he would be parting ways with coach Roger Rasheed.[281] On 25 September 2015, Dimitrov announced he had hiredJuan Martín del Potro's former coachFranco Davín,[282] but they parted ways in the first half of 2016.[283]
Since June 2016, Dimitrov has been coached byDaniel Vallverdu, a former coach of Andy Murray, during which tenure Murray won 2 Grand Slam Titles. Dimitrov has credited Vallverdu with his upturn in form during the2017 season and has mentioned several times during interviews and during his thank you speech, following his win of the2017 ATP Finals, that he is very thankful for his success to his coaching team and particularly Vallverdu. Dimitrov also stated numerous times through the season, that Valverdu changed his mentality towards the game and is the main factor for the way he plays against top ten players.[284][285] On 7 May 2019, Dimitrov declared that he and Vallverdu had parted ways following a string of unsuccessful tournament participations.[286]
Since 3 January 2021, Dimitrov was coached by Dante Bottini. Dante Bottini replaced the German coach Christian Groh, with whom Dimitrov worked during 2020.[287][288] The most serious successes of the new coach are linked to Japanese Kei Nishikori, who managed to climb to number 4 in the world rankings under his guidance. He split with Bottini in September 2022.[289][290]
In October 2022, after parting ways with Wawrinka, Vallverdu agreed to coach Dimitrov again till the end of the 2022 season which ended in November 2022.[291] On 1 December 2022, it was confirmed he will work with Dimitrov also in 2023.[292]
Dimitrov employs an all-round style of playing, and is said to have one of the most unusual play styles on the Tour. His flexibility and the fact that he's comfortable on all parts of the court is the main reason why many people said during his early years that he was one of the most talented up-and-coming players. Dimitrov is known for his hustle, athleticism, fluid style of play and exceptional shot-making.
Dimitrov employs an eastern to semi-western grip on his forehand, somewhat similar to that ofRoger Federer.[293] His forehand is known to be very heavy, powerful and accurate and is his primary weapon. He uses it to generate sudden pace in baseline rallies, often catching his opponents off guard. Dimitrov employs a conventionalsingle-handed backhand. His backhand is one of the most versatile in the game[294][295] due to his ability to hit it with top-spin, flat, and his backhand slice, whichJohn McEnroe has said is the best slice in the game. He also has a slightly unusual follow-through and finish on his backhand, often straightening out his hand and extending it all the way across his waist, which some have said is a weakness due to the time taken to recover by recoiling his arm. Dimitrov usually uses his backhand as a rally stroke to build up points rather than hit immediate winners, although he is known to be able to generate significant pace on his backhand when returning a weak shot from his opponent or when neutralising a fast-paced shot. He has displayed this ability more than 50 times alone in his semi-final against Rafael Nadal on the Australian Open 2017.
Dimitrov has a solid fast serve, often reaching 210 km/h, (130 mph) up to 220 km/h (140 mph). His first serve has been known to be pivotal, often producing aces on important points. Dimitrov employs more top-spin on his second serve, making it slower but more consistent. In 2017 however he had a big problem with double faults as he made 254 of them (around 40 more than 2016), although he made his best season so far.
One aspect of Dimitrov's game that has been widely praised is his variety and flexibility. He is comfortable playing on all areas of the court, having solid ground strokes and exceptional touch at the net. He also employs aggressive drop shots to catch opponents off guard and is even known to frequently use fakes, especially on the forehand side, to fake drop shots instead of fast ground strokes, wrongfooting opponents. His speed and athleticism are also exceptional, as is famous for using slide, sometimes even to the point of splitting, to reach balls. He also occasionally dives to reach balls, one of the most famous occasions being his second round match at theMonte-Carlo Masters againstJanko Tipsarević, in which he dove to hit a drop-shot, winning him the point. His all-round play has had many commentators and past players call him "classy" and "stylish".
Dimitrov is also noted as one of the only players on the tour who can consistently produce trick shots, alongsideGaël Monfils,Dustin Brown,Nick Kyrgios and Roger Federer. He has been known to hit a variety of trick shots and unorthodox shots, such as thetweener. Sometimes, he does it for entertainment purposes, eventually losing the point. Some of his most famous trick shots include his behind the back drop-shot againstViktor Troicki in theSwiss Indoors 2012 and his successive between-the-leg shots offJack Sock's returns in theStockholm Open 2014. Both shots were considered among the best trick shots ever, with the former considered the shot of the year in 2012.
Early in his career, Dimitrov was compared to Roger Federer due to their similarity in play style and actions, notably his forehand, backhand and serve, earning him the nickname "Baby Fed". Over the years he has attempted to shed this title and has had people appreciate his own style.[296] Dimitrov has won one of his eight meetings with Federer, at the US Open 2019.
As of 2013, Dimitrov uses a customizedWilson mid-size 93 square inches prototype racket provided by the Wilson Pro Room Team (as disclosed by pro tour stringers such as the Priority One team members), cosmetic on it is the Pro Staff 95 BLX, it is weighted about 12.oz strung with a 16X19 string pattern. In 2014, he switched to 18X17 string pattern. From 2015 and on, he switched to a 97 square inches head size, similar to Federer's frame but with a 18X17 pattern. In 2016, he worked with Wilson Pro Room Team to come up with the model now known as the Pro Staff 97S with a thinner beam width of 19.5mm. From the start of his adult career in 2010, he was sponsored byNike wearing the brand apparel and the Nike Air Zoom Vapor Pro, he previously wore the Air Zoom Vapor X which was also Federer's shoe of choice until 2021. From the2023 French Open onwards, Dimitrov became an ambassador forLacoste. At the start of 2025, Dimitrov started partnership withAdidas providing him new tennis footwear the Adizero Ubersonic 5.
Dimitrov’s professional endorsement agreements includeNike,[297]Wilson Sporting Goods[298] and in 2023 concluded a deal withLacoste Apparel Products and Lacoste Accessories.[299] In 2024 Grigor became the Global brand ambassador for Payhawk,[300] a global spend management software provider.
Historically he has acted as a brand ambassador toRolex,[297]Haagen Dazs,[297]American Express,[301]Jet Smarter,[302] Vitamin Well,[303] Creed[304] andTelenor[305] and in 2023 entered into multilevel partnership agreement withBianchet.[306]
Best young tennis player in Bulgaria – 2005[307]
Bulgarian Sportsperson of the Year – 2014,[102] 2017[308]
Sports Icarus Award — 2014,[309] 2017[308][310]
Balkan Athlete of the Year — 2017[9][308][10]
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
Current through the2025 Wimbledon Championships.
| Tournament | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | SR | W–L | Win% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | A | Q1 | 2R | 2R | 1R | QF | 4R | 3R | SF | QF | 4R | 2R | QF | 2R | 3R | 3R | 1R | 0 / 15 | 33–15 | 69% |
| French Open | A | A | 1R | 2R | 3R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 3R | 3R | 3R | 4R | 1R | 3R | 4R | QF | 1R | 0 / 15 | 21–15 | 58% |
| Wimbledon | 1R | A | 2R | 2R | 2R | SF | 3R | 3R | 4R | 1R | 1R | NH | 2R | 1R | 4R | 4R | 4R | 0 / 15 | 25–15 | 63% |
| US Open | Q2 | A | 1R | 1R | 1R | 4R | 2R | 4R | 2R | 1R | SF | 2R | 2R | 2R | 3R | QF | A | 0 / 14 | 21–14 | 60% |
| Win–loss | 0–1 | 0–0 | 2–4 | 3–4 | 3–4 | 12–4 | 6–4 | 7–4 | 11–4 | 6–4 | 9–4 | 5–3 | 6–4 | 4–4 | 10–4 | 13–4 | 3–3 | 0 / 59 | 100–59 | 63% |
| Result | Year | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 2017 | ATP Finals, London | Hard (i) |  David Goffin | 7–5, 4–6, 6–3 |
| Result | Year | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 2017 | Cincinnati Open, United States | Hard |  Nick Kyrgios | 6–3, 7–5 |
| Loss | 2023 | Paris Masters, France | Hard (i) |  Novak Djokovic | 4–6, 3–6 |
| Loss | 2024 | Miami Open, United States | Hard |  Jannik Sinner | 3–6, 1–6 |
| Result | Year | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 2008 | Wimbledon | Grass |  Henri Kontinen | 7–5, 6–3 |
| Win | 2008 | US Open | Hard |  Devin Britton | 6–4, 6–3 |
| Time span | Record accomplished | Players matched |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Won theATP Finals title on debut | 6 others:Stan Smith,Ilie Nastase,Guillermo Vilas,John McEnroe,Alex Corretja,Stefanos Tsitsipas[311] |
| 2011–2025 | Longest active streak of Grand Slam appearances (58) | Stands alone[312] |
| 2013–2024 | Active player to complete the career set of both Grand Slams and Masters quarterfinals | 4 others:Novak Djokovic,Marin Čilić,Daniil Medvedev,[313][238]Andrey Rublev[314] |
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
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