Dimitrov puts body on the line to down Hurkacz, reaches maiden Roland Garros QF

Grigor Dimitrov powered to a Grand Slam milestone on Sunday evening at Roland Garros.

The Bulgarian prevailed 7-6(5), 6-4, 7-6(3) in an all-Top 10 clash against Hubert Hurkacz to reach his first quarter-final at the clay-court major. The 33-year-old has now reached the last eight at each of the four Grand Slam tournaments.

Despite taking a heavy fall after diving for a volley deep into the third set that led to him having treatment on his hand, Dimitrov wrapped a two-hour, 51-minute triumph on Court Suzanne-Lenglen. It was a continuation of his dominance over his good friend Hurkacz in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series. He has now won all six tour-level matches he has played against the Pole.

That maiden @rolandgarros QF feeling 🫶 #RolandGarros | @GrigorDimitrov pic.twitter.com/4x5Kt7jFQK

— ATP Tour (@atptour) June 2, 2024

“It’s very hard to play against such a good friend. I’ve known him for quite a few years,” said Dimitrov in his on-court interview. “We practise a lot and we’ve had quite a few moments together. I knew it was going to be a difficult match, but I knew also that I had to fight a lot.

“I always wanted to get to that second week. Roland Garros was the only Slam where I felt that I could not get that extra step. But today, 15 years later, I made it, so I’m very happy with that.”

The 10th-seeded Dimitrov crucially saved all five break points he faced in the opening set of Sunday’s fourth-round encounter in the French capital, including three from 5-5, 0/40. After then clinching the first-set tie-break, the Bulgarian was the more consistent player over the next two sets and looked set to cruise to victory when 3-1 ahead in the third.

Hurkacz, who was also seeking his first quarter-final berth at Roland Garros, dug deep to force a tie-break but was unable to maintain his momentum. Dimitrov won the first four points of the tie-break en route to completing a win in which he withstood 20 aces from Hurkacz, according to Infosys Stats.

“I think especially when you play on a clay-court here, you have to paint [a picture with your tennis],” said Dimitrov, when asked about his aesthetically pleasing style. “You need to have finesse and also be able to read the court a little bit. Clay courts are always very tricky, you never know what kind of conditions you are going to get.

“I like my chances, I like when I can use my body a lot and chase balls around the court. Use my slice, use my variety. At the same time, when the ball is there to be hit, I try to make the most out of it.”

With his win, Dimitrov also joined Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Daniil Medvedev and Marin Cilic as the only active players to reach the quarter-finals of all Grand Slam and ATP Masters 1000 events. Now 28-8 for the 2024 season, the No. 10 in the PIF ATP Rankings will take on second seed Jannik Sinner, a 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-1 winner against home favourite Corentin Moutet, in the quarter-finals.