Recent Losses Highlight Need for Patience with Grigor Dimitrov

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: February 13, 2015

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Expectations can be both a blessing and a curse. For young tennis star Grigor Dimitrov, living up to his potential hasn't proven a simple task.

By any metric, 2014 was Dimitrov's breakout season. He finished the year with a 50-18 record, made his first Grand Slam quarterfinal at the Australian Open, his first major semifinal at Wimbledon and reached a career-high No. 8 ranking last August. 

With the help of coach Roger Rasheed, Dimitrov gained increased strength and fitness off the court, which resulted in titles at Acapulco, Queen's Club and Bucharest. Impressively, he won all three tournaments on different surfaces. That jack-of-all-trades ability makes him a player who can play well on any court in the world. 

Though his 2014 season fizzled to a close with a fourth-round loss at the U.S. Open and early exits in Shanghai and Paris-Bercy, Dimitrov more than earned his status as a legitimate contender.

As ESPN's Peter Bodo wrote:

Learning to win—day in, day out, on days sunny as well as cloudy, cool as well as warm, and when the backhand is clicking as well as on those days when it’s on the fritz—is an important mission for any young player. It’s doubly so for Dimitrov, a mercurial talent whose ball-striking prowess is matched by his flair and star quality.

So far this year, Dimitrov is finding out just how difficult it is for even the most talented players to win consistently.

In Rotterdam this week, he lost 2-6, 6-7 (8) in the second round to journeyman Gilles Muller. Dimitrov barely even made it out the first round, saving two match points just to survive against Paul-Henri Mathieu. 

But his most crushing defeat came to Andy Murray in the fourth round of the Australian Open.

A spot in the quarterfinals against teenager Nick Kyrgios was up for grabs, and Dimitrov had plenty of chances to take control of the match. He ...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis

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