Grigor Dimitrov confirmed the good things seen so far in the season, reaching the final of the Miami Open where he will face Jannik Sinner.
Dimitrov defeated Alexander Zverev in three sets with the final score of 6-4 6-7 6-4, in what was an epic match. There were moments of great difficulty during the match, but Dimitrov was always able to face them and overcome them.
“I think that in reality in the last three games of the match I played with authority, I went to the net when needed and attacked when needed, especially when I was in the lead. In the end I didn’t think about it much but I knew I had to take that step to win the match,” said Dimitrov at the press conference.
Regarding the ATP Masters 1000 final and the official return to the Top-10, Dimitrov explained: “The work is not finished here but in general the fact of consistently beating the best tennis players is worth more than any ranking. In the end you know that the ranking comes thanks to the successes.
In the last twelve months it has been difficult at times but I have always worked and I believed in it. I never lost sight of my goal and every week I set small goals for myself. Waking up in the morning and not feeling any pain is a great success for me. When I start putting all this together, well I can’t help but be happy.”
Dimitrov praises Serena Williams and talked about the Fab 4 era
Dimitrov then talked about his relationship with Serena Williams, who was present in the stands of the Hard Rock Stadium to watch the semifinals of the men’s singles.
“She’s amazing, we stayed in touch and she told me she would come and see me; tennis is tennis, but this is friendship and it’s one of the best things here, we’re all living our dream,” he told.
The Bulgarian then spoke about what it felt like to have been destined to play in the Fab Four tennis era.
“It’s the opposite, I’ve been very lucky and in fact not having these tennis players around anymore is a bit sad. The challenges against them shaped me mentally and also thanks to that I learned and got here.
They are the pioneers of current tennis. If you look back on your career, like 10 or 15 years, you are part of that generation that always had to compete against the best, the Big 4, like Roger, Rafa, Djokovic, Murray… Have you ever considered yourself as if I was unlucky because of that time, you know, that you have to go through that era, or, you know.
How many times do you say I played in one era against the best players and you beat them all? That’s great. I’m sorry, but I can to live with it. You know, all this, the titles and all this, yeah, it’s great. But the journey, the journey, has been, for me personally, not having these guys around, it’s a little sad. I don’t want to play them, don’t get me wrong! Right now, but it’s a little sad. I love watching them play.
I love competing against them and you can always learn something. I think over the years I’ve had so many quarterfinals and third and fourth round games where I had to play against them. But maybe that also shaped me to have that mental strength and to do certain things differently at that point in my career, like them. You can definitely learn a lot from each one, very different.
I think they each had a very different way of doing things, but they each had amazing qualities. I think in a way they are the pioneers of tennis today for us. I do not know. I think overall, having players like that with such diversity as all of them, Novak is still playing and Andy is too, but to actually see him I think will be a little rarer,” he explained.
Dimitrov was asked if he ever felt unlucky for playing in the era of Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, & Murray
“If you look back on your career, like 10 or 15 years of your career, you are part of that generation which always had to compete against the very best, Big 4, like Roger,… pic.twitter.com/WHtHlGUneX
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) March 30, 2024
Regarding the ATP Top-10 and added: “What I say doesn’t do it justice. As far as I’m concerned… I fight my battles. I run my race. This all comes from the work we all do as a team. I’m on a journey very different in my life and career. A lot has been done.
A lot of work. There’s a lot of everything behind it. So I don’t want to go too far back. There’s no reason for that. I continued to believe. I continued to thrive . I continued to have faith in myself.
When I didn’t believe in myself enough, the whole team around me constantly pushed me in the right direction. I had very good discipline. My family was by my side. All my closest friends … In the end it’s all love. This is just the icing on the cake.”
Grigor Dimitrov after beating Zverev in Miami
“You’re back in the top 10 for the first time since November 2018. What did it take physically and mentally?”
Grigor: “Whatever I say doesn’t do it justice. For me.. I fight my own battles. I run my own race. All that comes with the… pic.twitter.com/nroWXUvSEa
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) March 30, 2024
