The coach of Grigor Dimitrov and the rest of his team watched on in horror as the Bulgarian’s Wimbledon dream came to a heartbreaking end.
The Bulgarian faced a tough task against Jannik Sinner in the fourth round, but the 34-year-old played some of his best tennis against the world number one.
He won the first two sets and with the score locked at 2-2 in set three, Grigor Dimitrov suffered a pectoral tear and was unable to continue.
It was a devastating moment for Dimitrov, but his injury was not the only major talking point in his match with Sinner.
Jamie Delgado had no issue with the roof closing in the Grigor Dimitrov and Jannik Sinner match at Wimbledon
After Dimitrov took the first two sets 6-3, 7-5 against Sinner, the Wimbledon organisers decided to close the roof before set three began.
This was a controversial decision, as the roof closure alters how the game is played and it takes 13 minutes to take place. Many thought the move would favour Sinner and disrupt Dimitrov’s momentum.
The decision frustrated Andy Murray, who took to X to criticise the decision and claimed there was still more daylight before the roof needed to be closed.
However, Dimitrov’s coach Jamie Delgado reacted to the decision and he did not have a problem with the decision, and neither did world number 21. “I don’t think so. I know some people might feel that way,” Delgado told BBC via The Independent.
“But Grigor actually, after the match, was [saying he was] liking when the roof went on, because he actually felt it got a little bit warmer in there, and his body loosened up a little bit more, even more than it was.
“I guess it’s a separate question whether it should have been closed or not. I mean, I don’t think it made a difference in his actual injury.
“But it should be an outdoor tournament and you should play outdoors for as long as possible – I don’t disagree with that.”
Jamie Delgado shares how he felt about Grigor Dimitrov’s injury retirement at Wimbledon
Dimitrov was left in tears after tearing his pectoral muscle while serving against Sinner at Wimbledon.
He left the court for treatment and returned several minutes later to inform Sinner and the umpire that he could no longer continue.
Delgado was upset witnessing seeing his player have to retire from the match after being on the way to securing one of the biggest wins of his career.
Reacting to Dimitrov’s injury, Delgado said: “The work that he’s put in to get to this stage and play in these kinds of matches against someone like Sinner, and Wimbledon’s his favourite tournament.
“He’s of course had a bit of misfortune in pulling out of the previous Grand Slams, but he was playing so well – tactically perfect, he was obviously executing it to perfection.
“It was one of the matches of his career, and as a team, of course we thought he could push on and win that match, and who knows what goes on in this tournament? But it was a huge sadness today for us.
“I think emotionally will be just as hard. It’s getting harder to pick yourself up from those lows… It’s gonna be tough, the next couple of months.”
