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‘This doesn’t feel like a win at all’ – Sinner advances after Dimitrov injury retirement
Wimbledon 2025
Dates: 30 June-13 July Venue: All England Club
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Jannik Sinner expressed his discomfort with accepting his Wimbledon quarter-final berth “as a win,” following Grigor Dimitrov’s tearful retirement due to injury, marking an emotional end to their match.
The top-ranked Sinner faced a potential upset, trailing Dimitrov by two sets when the Bulgarian, seeded 19th, collapsed in visible pain.
Dimitrov, 34, who has now been forced to retire in each of his last five Grand Slam appearances, clutched his right pectoral muscle and was unable to continue after a brief medical timeout.
Sinner, a three-time major champion from Italy, becomes only the ninth man in the Open Era to reach seven consecutive Grand Slam quarter-finals.
However, the achievement was overshadowed on Centre Court Monday night, with Sinner more concerned for his friend’s well-being after the heartbreaking conclusion.
Sinner, who returned for his on-court interview after assisting a devastated Dimitrov off the court, stated, “I don’t take this as a win at all; this is just an unfortunate moment for all of us to witness.
“He has struggled in the last Grand Slams with injuries a lot, so seeing him again with this injury is very tough.
“We all saw by his reaction how much he cares about the sport, he is one of the hardest-working players on tour, and it is very unfortunate.”
The 23-year-old added, before asking the crowd to applaud Dimitrov and his team, “This is not the end we wanted to see, and it’s very sad. We all wish him only the best.”
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Sinner, himself affected by an elbow issue following a fall earlier in the match, appeared headed for a significant upset, trailing 6-3, 7-5, 2-2 after two hours.
This followed his record-equalling start to the tournament, where he conceded only 17 games across three impressive performances – the joint-fewest in the Open Era.
He would have set another record had he lost no more than nine games to Dimitrov, but his inspired opponent, who has reached eight major quarter-finals, had surpassed that total midway through the second set.
However, 12 months after retiring from his fourth-round match against Daniil Medvedev at the All England Club due to a knee injury, Dimitrov emerged from his medical timeout in tears, realizing his tournament was over.
“I don’t know what to say because he is an incredible player, and we all saw this today,” said Sinner, who will next face American 10th seed Ben Shelton.
“He has been so unlucky in the past couple of years. He is a good friend of mine, and we understand each other very well off the court, too.
“Seeing him in this position, if there was a chance for him to play in the next round, he would deserve it.
“Mostly, I hope he has a speedy recovery.”
Sinner later added in his news conference that he will have an MRI scan on his elbow on Tuesday “to see if there’s something serious”.
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