After losing in the Miami Open quarterfinals, Carlos Alcaraz claims Grigor Dimitrov treated him like a “13-year-old.”
The Bulgarian Dimitrov defeated Germany’s fourth seed, Alexander Zverev, 6-2, 6-4, to go to the round of four.
“He performed incredible tennis, nearly flawless,” stated top-seeded Alcaraz, 20.
His goal was to become the first person since Roger Federer in 2017 to win the “Sunshine Double,” or back-to-back titles in Indian Wells and Miami.
The Spaniard was disappointed by 11th seed Dimitrov, and Alcaraz continued, saying, “I couldn’t find solutions.” I was at a loss as to how to make him feel uneasy on the court. On his end, it was an excellent game.
“It was absurd. I was explaining to my staff that I was unsure of what needed to be done. I’m not aware of his weakness. I have no knowledge at all.”
Before breaking Alcaraz’s first service game at 5-2, Dimitrov dominated the opening set.
After trailing 4-1 in the second set, the two-time Grand Slam champion rallied, but Dimitrov broke for the fourth time to win the match in 92 minutes.
Dimitrov, who also defeated Alcaraz at the Shanghai Masters in October, stated that “you have to play at your best – that’s just how it is” in order to prevail against him.
“Genius sometimes lies in simplicity. It’s really challenging, particularly when you’re up against someone like him, but I managed to dictate the game and read the game a bit better than the last time.”
Dimitrov will return to the top 10 for the first time since 2018 if he beats Zverev to reach the Miami final.
(BBC)
