Former world No. 3 Grigor Dimitrov insisted it wasn't easy playing against Alex Bolt after beating the Australian at Melbourne Park on Wednesday. Dimitrov, seeded at No. 18, handed a 7-6 (1) 6-1 6-2 loss to Bolt to progress into the third round at the Australian Open.
After losing the opening point of the first-set tie-break, Dimitrov won seven consecutive points to win the opener. After losing a tight first set, Bolt's game fell apart as Dimitrov took a 5-0 second-set lead before serving out for the set in the seventh game.
The Bulgarian also earned two breaks in the third set to wrap up a straight-set win. "It’s been a long road the last two or three months, I’m just very happy to be through. It’s never easy against a home crowd favourite,” Dimitrov said, per the Australian Open website.
“I just want to make the most of this opportunity”.
Dimitrov plays next against Pablo Carreno Busta
World No. 21 Dimitrov is now set for a tough third round clash as he is set to clash next against No. 15 seed Carreno Busta.
Dimitrov's best result at the Australian Open came in 2017, when he made the semifinal before losing to Rafael Nadal in five sets. Meanwhile, Bernard Tomic says he is happy with where he is at at the moment. Tomic, who made it past the Australian Open qualifying to earn a place in the main draw, lost to Denis Shapovalov 6-1 6-3 6-2 in the second round.
"Regardless of where I am, I know I'm pretty good, in a good state from taking off tennis for about eight months. I couldn't ask for anything more. Like I said, winning four matches at a Grand Slam (including qualies) is almost too good to be true for me at this stage," Tomic said after losing to Shapovalov, as revealed by Ravi Ubha.
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