Bulgarian tennis player Grigor Dimitrov is heading through to the second week at Wimbledon after staging a stellar five-set triumph over Italian Matteo Berrettini at the All England Club on Saturday night.
"I enjoyed it too much, that's why I wanted to play five sets," he commented in his on-court interview. "Truly amazing to be back here, I'm just so happy."
"I just wanted to come and compete again and again again, as much as I could - there's something special in the air out here, so thank you," he added, addressing the crowd.
In a duel of titans, former world No. 3 Grigor Dimitrov fought hard to defeat 2021 runner-up Matteo Berrettini, 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 6-3, in a breathtaking three-hour, 32-minute match, booking his ticket to the last 16 at Wimbledon.
Dimitrov vs. Berrettini: The Match as It Happened
On Saturday night, Dimitrov returned to Center Court for the first time since he sustained a career-threatening injury (pectoral tear) at last year's SW19 last 16, when he was on the brink of a potential win over eventual champion Jannik Sinner.
Addressing the incident, the 9-time ATP title holder said: "After the way I exited last year, I'll never know what would've happened, but guess what this year I'm back here and I'm able to rewrite everything again.
"I'm just trying to be completely honest here and vulnerable with you guys. It's not about the winning; it's just for me to overcome every obstacle that I have in front of me."
Currently ranked at world No. 146, the Bulgarian player accepted a wild card to compete at the grass-court major, making the most of it within each match.
Previously, he staged a stunning third-round performance to dismantle 15th seed Jakub Mensik, 15 years his junior, in four sets after three hours.
Meaning business, the 35-year-old took the initiative against Berrettini, pocketing the first two sets.
However, the Roman native battled back in due time, kicking up a level in the third set, beginning to build a turnaround Dimitrov would not allow him to complete.
In the fourth set, under the closed roof, the 30-year-old shone brightly despite a few moments of frustration, opening with an early break after closing out the third 6-3.
Serving big, he produced some of his best tennis; moreover, he did it with consistency and confidence in his game.
He managed to pull himself out of heavy pressure when trailing two sets to one and 3-4 down, executing drop shots with precision.
Then, he held his ground to set level, generating break points in the process, which he took with a backhand down the line.
Having earned three set points, he ultimately saw the game out with an ace 7-5, sending the match to a decider.
With the clock ticking over the three-hour mark, the fifth set got underway.
The player coached by David Nalbandian and Jamie Delgado rolled back the years in vintage mode.
Bringing his shotmaking to another level, Dimitrov found his way into the match, converting a break in the fourth game and holding to open a 4-1 lead, hitting an exquisite winner down the line.
Building momentum, he charged forward, and when the former world No. 6 struck a forehand long, he wrapped up the set 6-3 and the match, returning to the last 16 for the fourth time in a row.
All in all, Dimitrov hit 46 winners against 25 unforced errors, compared to the Italian player's 49 and 43, respectively.
Also, he converted four of 11 break points and won 73 percent of the points on his first serve.
Next, he will meet for the first time British wild card Arthur Fery, who earlier shocked Eastbourne champion Zizou Bergs with a 2-6, 7-5, 2-6, 7-6(3), 7-6 (5) win after a marathon four-hour and 38-minute encounter.
“There are no words for it, honestly,” the 23-year-old expressed on his dream run at his home Slam. “I don’t know what’s going on right now. It’s going to take some time to really digest it. And I’m just so glad."
Assessing his third-round contest, Fery stressed: “I was just trying to stay in the match, backing myself as a competitor. I was down pretty much for the whole match, and I managed to scramble back from two breaks down in the fourth and fifth sets.
"I tried to be the best fighter I could and let the rest happen.”
It is the first time the young player has progressed to the fourth round at Grand Slam level.