Canada's Diallo fights back for upset win over Dimitrov, advancing to Madrid Open quarters

The Canadian Press

· Posted: Apr 30, 2025 5:04 PM EDT | Last Updated: 2 minutes ago

Montreal's Gabriel Diallo precocious to his archetypal Masters-level quarterfinal with a comeback 5-7, 7-6 (7), 6-4 fourth-round triumph implicit 15th-seed Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria connected Wednesday.

Diallo won the 2nd acceptable successful a hard-fought tiebreaker to necktie the lucifer 1-1, past made a interruption successful the opening crippled of the 3rd acceptable basal up.

The 23-year-old Canadian won his archetypal lucifer constituent aft forcing his seasoned hostile into an error.

Dimitrov utilized his large service to his vantage successful the hotly contested 2nd set, firing 7 aces implicit his past 3 work games and different successful the tiebreaker.

But Diallo fought disconnected 3 lucifer points and won 2 points connected instrumentality to spell up 8-7 earlier taking the 2nd acceptable with an ace.

"I honestly thought I was going home," Diallo said. "I thought the margins were truthful thin.

"It mightiness beryllium the champion serving show I've ever displayed successful my full life. I was fortunate I got the constituent astatine 4-6 with [his] loose error, and past I was truly assured astatine 5-6 down my serve. Then I saved different lucifer point."

Turning point

The pivotal infinitesimal of the archetypal acceptable came successful Game 11, erstwhile Diallo alternated 2 double-faults with 2 aces earlier Dimitrov prevailed to people the lone interruption of the acceptable astatine a important time.

Both players were beardown connected serve, with conscionable 2 breaks successful the full match. Diallo faced conscionable 1 interruption constituent portion Dimitrov faced four.

Diallo volition adjacent look the victor of a lucifer betwixt sixth effect Alex de Minaur of Australia and 10th effect Lorenzo Musetti of Italy successful Thursday's quarterfinals.

Diallo's best-ever tally astatine an ATP 1000 tourney has travel with a mates of large breaks. He precocious to the main gully arsenic a fortunate loser aft coming up abbreviated successful qualifying and avoided a immense hurdle erstwhile Spanish prima Carlos Alcaraz withdrew from their second-round lucifer with an injury.

But helium has been afloat worth connected the court, beating Belgium's Zizou Bergs, Poland's Kamil Majchrzak, erstwhile satellite No. 8 Cameron Norrie of Britain and present Dimitrov.

Diallo entered the tourney with a career-high ATP Tour ranking of 78. His triumph implicit Dimitrov volition determination him up to No. 54, according to the tour's unrecorded rankings.