Grigor Dimitrov details key to 2023 resurgence - "I never set myself any limits but I need to be kinder to myself"
Grigor Dimitrov, talking about his stellar showing in 2023, has stressed the importance of cutting himself some slack and not putting any boundaries.
After sailing through a victory against Carlos Alcaraz 5-7, 6-2, 6-4 in the fourth round of the 2023 Shanghai Masters, Dimitrov effortlessly swept past Nicolas Jarry in straight sets 7-6 (2), 6-4 in the quarterfinal on Friday, October 13. He thus booked his place in the final four of the ATP Masters 1000 tournament.
This victory marks the Bulgarian’s ninth Masters 1000 semifinal appearance. The World No.19 keeps his bid to win his first title since the 2017 ATP Finals alive. Dimitrov, 32, will take on the Russian Andrey Rublev who got the better of Ugo Humbert, 6-2, 6-3 later on Friday.
Following his victory over the Chilean, Grigor Dimitrov addressed the media where he talked about his game and his physical and mental state. He said:
"I prefer to be more consistent, because I think this is also where I feel like I'm building more and I'm learning more about myself, about my game, and what also works for me overall in order for me to perform more consistently. I think that's what I'm after right now."
"I mean, also I think I'm in a moment in my career where I need to be able to maintain a very good amount of work, as well. I cannot put myself in a position where I practice the way I practiced at 22, for example, or 25 or 26. I need to be also very cautious and mindful of where my body's at," he added.
Grigor Dimitrov continued by saying that he did not want to restrict his abilities, but that he also did not want to overlook his physical condition in order to do well in important tournaments.
"Of course, I never set myself any limits, but I need to be more kinder to myself in order for me to put myself in a position to be able to perform good at the very important tournaments," he said.
"So it's a very, I think, a delicate place where me and the team have taken into consideration, because we definitely cannot practice the way we used to practice before. I need to look after my body, as well, to the best way that I can”, he added.
Grigor Dimitrov then highlighted the importance of his mental state by saying:
"Also, mentally, it's very important for me to be, as I said, rested, mindful, and to really set myself on the things that really matter to me when I get to a tournament."
"You don’t get many opportunities against him" - Grigor Dimitrov on Nicolas Jarry
The quarter-final showdown between Grigor Dimitrov and Nicolas Jarry at the 2023 Shanghai Masters was a real nail-biter, with both players knocking it out of the park and making more winners than mistakes.
Dimitrov wasted no time in giving credit to his opponent during an on-court interview where he said:
"For me, he [Jarry] is one of the best servers right now. I’ve played him a couple of times, and I feel that every time it gets tougher and tougher to return against him."
"I was just able to be solid. I don’t think I did anything crazy in those moments. All I did was kept believing in my game and going after my shots. You don’t get many opportunities against him. Especially at the beginning, it is very difficult because he doesn’t give you any rhythm," the Bulgarian added.