“People called him Baby Federer; these few months, he doesn’t look like baby anything”: Fans react to Grigor Dimitrov’s Miami Open heroics vs Zverev

On Friday, March 29, Grigor Dimitrov emerged victorious over Alexander Zverev and secured a spot in the final of the Miami Open 2024. In the upcoming final, set to take place on Sunday, he will face off against Italy’s Jannik Sinner.

Despite a strenuous two hours and 39 minutes on the court at Hard Rock Stadium, Dimitrov emerged victorious over World No. 5 Zverev with a score of 6-4, 6-7(4), 6-4. Throughout the match, he showcased exceptional serving skills, delivering a total of 18 aces and managing to hold his serve without being broken.

Prior to their match on Friday, the Bulgarian had never been able to defeat Zverev since their initial encounter in 2014. Notably, the German had dominated their head-to-head record with a 7-1 lead.

Additionally, this marks his second back-to-back victory against a Top 5 opponent, as he defeated World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals. Moreover, his triumph over Zverev secures Dimitrov a place in the Top 10 of the ATP rankings, which will be officially updated on Monday, April 1st.

Fans of tennis on X (previously known as Twitter) were overjoyed to witness the 32-year-old player, who was once nicknamed ‘Baby Federer’ due to his graceful style of play, make a comeback to the top ranks of men’s tennis.

“Best story in tennis right now and one of the best in sports. The man [Grigor Dimitrov] cursed years ago with the nickname “Baby Fed”blasts world No. 2 and world No. 5 in consecutive matches to make the Miami Open final. (And just knocked Alex De Minaur out of top 10),”one fan wrote.

“For years, people called him Baby Fed. But these last few months, he doesn’t look like baby anything,”a tennis-dedicated page wrote.

Two other supporters expressed their hope for Grigor Dimitrov to defeat Jannik Sinner in the final match on Sunday.

“We used to pray for moments like this!!! Unbelievable to see him play the best tennis of his career at 32. Love Sinner, but I think most tennis fans probably want Grigor to get this one. What a player,”a fan wrote.

“While I like Sinner a lot I hope Grigor will finally win his Masters 1000 on Sunday. Either way I’m hoping for a great match like what we had tonight,”wrote another.

Additionally, here are some additional responses from X:

Jannik Sinner leads Grigor Dimitrov 2-1 in their head-to-head matches

On Sunday, March 31, at the 2024 Miami Open, Grigor Dimitrov will face a tough challenge as he battles Jannik Sinner in his pursuit of claiming his second Masters 1000 title.

If Dimitrov is able to secure a win on Sunday, he will tie the head-to-head record with Sinner, which currently stands at 2-1 in favor of the Italian. Although Sinner defeated him twice in 2023 in Miami and Beijing, Dimitrov emerged victorious in their first match in 2020 at the Italian Open.

Significantly, the upcoming Sunday match will mark Jannik Sinner’s third time competing in the Miami Open finals. He initially reached the finals in 2021, where he was defeated by Hubert Hurkacz, and then faced another loss to Daniil Medvedev two years later.