A resurgent Grigor Dimitrov will be aiming to stall Jannik Sinner’s surge when they meet in the Miami Open final on Sunday, live on Sky Sports Tennis.
Dimitrov is set to climb back into the top 10 for the first time since 2018 after beating Alexander Zverev on Friday to seal a spot in the Miami Open final, with the Bulgarian saying he is finally reaping the rewards of his hard work under Andy Murray’s former coaches Jamie Delgado and Dani Vallverdu.
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Highlights of Grigor Dimitrov against Alexander Zverev from the Miami Open semi-finals
Dimitrov had been touted as a potential winner of the biggest prizes in tennis since becoming Wimbledon junior champion in 2008 with a style likened to that of Roger Federer, but the 32-year-old has yet to live up to his early promise.
However, he has been in fine form in recent weeks, defeating top-10 players Carlos Alcaraz and Hubert Hurkacz in Miami, before claiming a stunning three-set win over fifth-ranked Zverev in the semi-finals.
“I think the consistency of beating top players, that to me is a bigger success than anything else,” Dimitrov said.
“If you do that, you get the ranking. If you do that, things are just getting better for you… I think the discipline brought me to this moment. There is nothing else. I didn’t kind of deviate from my target.
“I had small targets throughout – every single week I had a target, and also to be able to put my body through all that on a daily basis was also very important for me. When you start putting all that together, I think it’s what I’m most proud of.”
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Carlos Alcaraz says Dimitrov made him feel like he’s ’13 years old’ after his shock defeat in the quarter-finals
Dimitrov, who faces world No 3 Sinner in Sunday’s final, said he is hoping to employ his diverse array of skills to the best of his ability.
“I know I have a lot of tools in my bag that I can use, but also I need to make sure that I use them at the right time,” Dimitrov said.
“I think today, for example, I was able to, especially in the third set, I was able to use those ones, you know, the finesse, use the slice a little bit more, be a little bit more aggressive with my forehand, serve and volley, coming in.”
Delgado: Grigor is still in incredible physical shape
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Dimitrov’s coach Jamie Delgado spoke to Gigi Salmon and Annabel Croft about what makes the Bulgarian so difficult to play against
“When I started working with Grigor, he’s obviously dropped down the rankings a lot to around 35 and for us it was about trying to have the best years of his career,” Delgado said before Dimitrov’s quarter-final win over Carlos Alcaraz in Miami.
“He’s still in incredible physical shape and he’s got a great game that can trouble a lot of the younger guys with his variety.
“If we can get some order in his game and get some confidence going, he can get back into the top 10 and we can go from there.”
Croft: Dimitrov will have his work cut out against Sinner
“Grigor has had some highs and some big lows, but the way that he’s fought those difficult moments, it’s kind of a journey of life on a tennis circuit,” said Annabel Croft on Sky Sports Tennis. “I think this is some of the best tennis we’ve seen him play and I think his coach Jamie Delgado agreed with that.
“His volleying is the best I’ve seen in the men’s game and the use of the sliced backhand, the fitness skills, the agility, everything came together in that match but he’s going to have his work cut out taking on Jannik Sinner in the final, that’s for sure.”
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Watch Jannik Sinner defeat Daniil Medvedev to progress through to the Miami Open final
Sinner produced a stunning performance to demolish defending champion Daniil Medvedev to reach Sunday’s final, which is live on Sky Sports Tennis from 8pm BST.
The Italian, whose only loss this season was a semi-final defeat to Carlos Alcaraz in Indian Wells two weeks ago, became the first player this season to reach three finals and boasts a 21-1 record.
The 22-year-old feels ready to banish his memories of final defeat from 2021 and 2023 in Miami.
“The first time I came here I made final, I couldn’t sleep the night [before],” said Sinner.
“The second time, which was last year, I was relaxed because I went through periods where I already [had similar] experiences.
“Now I’m a different player, different person. I will handle it hopefully a little bit better again.”
Dimitrov has not beaten Sinner since the pair’s first tour-level clash in 2020 on the Rome clay, with the Italian hitting back to take a 2-1 series lead by winning their two subsequent meetings, both last year and on hard courts, in Miami and Beijing.
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Martina Navratilova believes Sinner is head and shoulders above nearly everyone when it comes to the way he strikes the ball
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