Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov Notches 20th Wimbledon Victory in Commanding Fashion

Sports | July 1, 2024, Monday // 16:12|  views

Grigor Dimitrov, Bulgaria's most accomplished tennis player, commenced his 14th appearance at Wimbledon with a dominant performance on the grass courts of the All England Club in London.

As the 10th seed, Dimitrov defeated Serbia's Dusan Lajovic 6-3, 6-4, 7-5 in the first round, marking his 20th victory at this prestigious Grand Slam tournament and his 30th win of the season.

Winning the toss, the Bulgarian opted to serve and began with intense focus, breaking Lajovic early to consolidate a 3-0 lead. Serving for the first set at 5-3, Dimitrov surged to a 40-0 advantage and closed out the set in just 27 minutes when Lajovic's return went wide.

In the following set, Dimitrov quickly secured a breakthrough and consolidated to extend his lead. Despite facing a 40-40 score in the eighth game after his first double fault, he rebounded with two strong shots to take a commanding 5-3 lead. Serving for a 2-0 set advantage in the tenth game, he powered through with his 14th ace, finishing decisively with a 40-0 run.

During the third set, Lajovic managed to break Dimitrov's serve early for a 2-0 lead, but the Bulgarian, a former junior champion at Wimbledon, overcame physical discomfort to break back at love for 3-4. Despite Lajovic saving two break points to level the set, Dimitrov surged ahead again in the 11th game, breaking Lajovic to love and serving out the match. He saved a crucial break point and converted on match point with a backhand winner.

Dimitrov concluded with 45 winners, including 16 aces, and 23 unforced errors, winning an impressive 92 percent of his first-serve points.

With this victory, Dimitrov earns 90 points towards his world ranking, where he currently stands at number 10, and secures 93,000 pounds in prize money (pre-tax).

Next, Dimitrov faces China's Shang Juncheng, ranked 91st in the world, in the second round on Wednesday at Wimbledon.


Tags: tennis, Bulgaria, Dimitrov, Wimbledon

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