WATCH: Grigor Dimitrov secure his ticket to advance in the Madrid Open

Ryan Jarvis 29 Apr 2023 10:13 AM

Grigor Dimitrov serving

Grigor Dimitrov advances to the round of 32 after defeating French star Gregoire Barrere. The pair offered some incredible efforts that saw the match come to an end with a narrow result.

26th seed Dimitrov has proven to be a worthy adversary when on the clay court. The star has had a decent start to the clay court season, having won two out of his last four matches before coming into a recent fixture. His last fixture occurred at the Barcelona Open, where the Bulgarian was unfortunate to suffer an injury, forcing him to retire.

The Frenchman had a very similar start to his season on the surface, having won two out of his last four matches before losing to the 26th seed. He made an excellent star to the Madrid Open, winning his first match 6-0, 5-7, 6-3 over American competitor Emilio Nava.

Unfortunately for the 29-year-old, he was unable to add to his winning start, which saw him receive an early exit from the tournament.

The pair squared off for an exciting one hour and 56 minutes before the Bulgarian was able to secure a narrow 6-7 (6-8), 6-7(2-7) win over his French competitor. This marked the third time that the stars collided in their careers, with Dimitrov claiming his second win over his French foe.

Barrere saw the only break points of the match. However, the Frenchman needed to be more clinical with his opportunities, which saw him claim zero out of the possible five available. This was a critical factor in the 29-year-olds defeat.

Dimitrov is set to take on first seed Carlos Alcaraz tomorrow, which will mark the second time the pair have faced each other.

Alcaraz claimed his ticket after making a spirited comeback in his match against Finnish star Emil Ruusuvuori, which saw the match ended 2-6, 6-4, 6-2. This marked the Spaniard’s sixth straight win of the clay court season, which will certainly be a significant influence on the star’s confidence while making him a match favourite.

Alcaraz was thrilled with the victory of his Finnish foe and voiced his felling on the match by saying, “I was really happy I was able to save that game and come back a bit. It was really tough. Emil played unbelievably, but I am really, really happy to get through that.”

The Spaniard’s recent comeback will undoubtedly give him an extra boost of confidence to help push him on to the final.

An exciting fixture awaits us between the world No. Two and the world No. 32.

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