WATCH: Cheeky Grigor Dimitrov’s behind-the-back shot at the 2014 Stockholm Open

Tennis Videos

Ryan Jarvis
April 26, 2023

Players and fans alike often have a preference for surfaces, with some not being very eager about the clay courts. So, let’s bring in a scintillating shot from Grigor Dimitrov to help whet the hard-court lovers’ appetite.

Bulgarian star Dimitrov can certainly match the best in the business on his day. The 31-year-old currently sits at number 32 on the ATP Rankings, but in his heyday he was world No 3, which gave him the honour of being the highest-ranked Bulgarian player ever.

He began his professional career in 2008, and since then, he has gone on to win eight singles titles with the biggest title coming at the 2017 ATP Finals, while he was also part of Team Europe’s 2018 Laver Cup-winning team.

He easily became one of the most exciting players to watch, having produced some immaculate efforts over the years, with one of his most exciting shots coming from the 2014 quarter-finals in Stockholm.

The Bulgarian produced an outrageous strike against American Jack Sock. The pair battled it out for an exciting one hour and 59 minutes before the Dimitrov sealed his victory. During their clash, the rising star at the time whipped out a cheeky behind-the-back shot that was too perfect to counter.

With both having played some beautiful tennis in the previous round, things were set up for a brilliant match-up. Sock secured his chance to face Dimitrov after defeating Russian star Andrey Golubev 6-1, 4-6, 6-0 after an exciting one hour and 43 minutes.

Dimitrov booked his ticket to the last eight after a narrow 7-5, 7-6 win over Teymuraz Gabashvili. Their match was certainly an exciting one to witness, with both stars producing exciting tennis over the one hour and 54 minutes of playing.

The second-seeded Dimitrov, who was only 23 at the time, grabbed an impressive 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 win over his American opponent, which saw him continue his title push right up until the final.

Unfortunately for the Bulgarian, he met first seed Tomas Berdych in the showpiece. After a grueling two hours and 21 minutes, Czech star Berdych sealed his victory with a 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 win over his opponent.

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Dimitrov is currently in action at the Madrid Open as the 26 seed and is set to begin his title push with his opponent to still be decided.

An exciting fixture awaits us, and hopefully, Dimitrov can give us some more entertaining shots, like his clinical behind-the-back shot against Sock in 2014.

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Grigor Dimitrov Jack Sock