Jannik Sinner advanced to the Wimbledon quarter-finals despite hurting his right elbow in a fall and dropping the first two sets, because his opponent, Grigor Dimitrov, had to quit with an injured pectoral muscle.
The No.1-seeded Sinner hadn’t dropped a set in the tournament until falling behind No.19 Dimitrov 6-3, 7-5. But at 2-all in the third set, Dimitrov stopped playing.
It’s the fifth consecutive grand slam tournament where Dimitrov failed to complete a match. He also did it at the Australian Open in January and at Roland-Garros in May, plus last year’s Wimbledon and US Open.
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On the last point against Sinner, Dimitrov served and immediately clutched his chest with his left hand. He took a few steps and crouched, before sitting on the grass. Sinner walked over to that side of the court to check on him.
“My pec,” Dimitrov told Sinner.
Dimitrov then went to the sideline, sat in his chair and was checked by a trainer and doctor. As Dimitrov talked with them, Sinner knelt nearby.
After a delay of a few minutes, Dimitrov walked toward the locker room with the medical personnel.
Soon, he reemerged and said he couldn’t continue.
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Grigor Dimitrov tells Sinner it’s his pectoral muscle. Getty
Two hours earlier, it was Sinner down on the ground and seemingly in trouble.
He was hurt in the opening game, when his foot gave out from under him and he slipped and fell behind a baseline, bracing his fall with his right hand while still holding his racquet.
Dimitrov has had a wrestched run of luck at grand slams. Getty
During a medical timeout while trailing 3-2 in the second set, Sinner winced as a trainer massaged the elbow. Sinner’s coaches, Darren Cahill and Simone Vagnozzi, looked on from their box with concern.
Sinner — a three-time grand slam champion who will play No.10 Ben Shelton of the United States for a berth in the semi-finals — was given a pill to take and play resumed.
He frequently shook his right arm or rubbed his elbow between points.
Sinner dodges a bullet. Getty
He entered the match having lost a total of just 17 games in the tournament, tying the record for the fewest in the Open era by man at Wimbledon through three completed matches.
After the second set, the match was paused so the stadium’s retractable roof could be closed because of fading sunlight.
Two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray was not a fan of that decision, writing on social media: “So ridiculous to close the roof at this stage of the match. At least an hour of light left….well over a set of tennis can still be played… i’ts an outdoor tournament!”
About a half-hour later, the match was over.
