LONDON: Grigor Dimitrov says he doesn’t rate his upcoming meeting with Jannik Sinner as a ‘wow’ match at Wimbledon.
The Bulgarian will take on the world No.1 after beating Sebastian Ofner 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(0). It is the third year in a row that Dimitrov has reached the fourth round at The All England Club. Although his best run was back in 2014 when he reached the semi-finals.
Awaiting him in the next round will be top seed Sinner, who is yet to drop a set in the tournament. He is bidding to become the first Italian in history to win a singles title at the tournament and already has a trio of major titles to his name.
The upcoming showdown gives Dimitrov the chance of taking on the world’s highest-ranked player in a Grand Slam on one of its two premier courts. Having played during the same time as the Big Three, he knows what it is like to take on the big names. However, do matches like this feel any more special considering he is playing in the later stages of his career?
“It’s the slams that you always want to do well, you want to win, and you want to push yourself the most,” he said.
“This particular match for me, with all due respect, I don’t rate it as a ‘wow’ match. It’s just another day for me to perform.”
In recent months, Dimitrov has had a torrid time at the majors, being forced to withdraw from his last four at some stage due to injury. His most recent withdrawal at the French Open was due to his hip.
“It’s been a difficult six, seven months for me. I put in a lot of work. I’ve struggled a lot. That match has meaning for me more so than anything else.” Dimitrov explains.
“But do I want to put any bigger occasion to it? No. I think I’m very content with what it is.
“I’m very positive at the stage where I’m at. Again, physically is probably the number one thing that I really need the most, and it’s there right now.
“The rest is having fun. I mean, this is important. We’re in the second week of Wimbledon. Let’s have fun.”
Dimitrov’s victory over Ofner was his 100th Grand Slam win. He will play Sinner on Monday.
