If Grigor Dimitrov Wants To Shed His “Showtime” Nickname, He Needs To Stop Winning Points Like This [Video]

Of course I was disappointed Andy didn’t manage to win, but with hindsight I think he can take lots of positives from this tournament.

Over the years we’ve grown used to Murray starting slowly and working his way to form, but frankly I thought he had little chance against Dimitrov. Yes he had a 3-0 head to head, but he had a better one against Simon, and look how he laboured to beat him. In the match with Dimitrov, much of his play was brilliant compared to the rest of the week. Andy’s movement is good, and his back is standing up to the test. Now he needs to recapture his best shot-making, and with that will come the confidence to be more attacking when it’s needed.

Concerning the new courts at Acapulco, they do seem to be somewhat dangerous. Players are falling down a lot. When iron-man Ferrer retires with an injury, something’s wrong.

March 1st, 2014 at 12:56 pm

@Colin
Andy said he’s learning to “trust” his back.
I thought that was a very insightful comment. clearly he is still in transition at the mo. but as you say, improving steadily.
Agree about the courts, normally Andy and David never fall over.

March 1st, 2014 at 1:21 pm

There was a lot to be encouraged by in this match (and tournament overall). He was focused and started well and fought back from a break down in the final set. I saw the return of his passion and fighting spirit. Yes, he made some loose mistakes in the 2 TBs but he was in prime position to win against a hot opponent.

Someone tweeted Andy saying they were worried by his loss to the 19th ranked player and he replied: “don’t be… im very close to being back to my best”. Agreed.

March 1st, 2014 at 1:55 pm

I still feel after andy’s loss….that he is improving and is moving in the right direction, toughening up with each match. Long tight matches are what is doctor’s prescription now.

March 1st, 2014 at 2:17 pm

Grigor is such an athletic talent and if he keeps improving, as he has the past year, he might surpass all the media hype he has had to grow up with.

March 1st, 2014 at 2:27 pm

Very good win for Dimitrov, after losing the first set he made some adjustments and came forward a little more, which made it a little less comfortable for Murray.

For Murray, I don’t think he’s back to his best, but I also felt his demeanor suggested he wasn’t fully concentrating – only he would know why.

Anderson is a good player who can be very difficult if he’s serving well and sharp, but he doesn’t have a lot of alternatives if he doesn’t have his “A” game. I would say Dimitrov is the better player but he’s had some long late nights this week which could be problematic if the final is also tight.

Does anyone know why the matches are all starting so late?

March 1st, 2014 at 3:46 pm

Does anyone know why the matches are all starting so late?

Do you know what time is in Mexico now?

March 1st, 2014 at 4:03 pm

Right now at this moment it is serious siesta time in Acapulco – about 2 or 3 pm. The men’s match is scheduled for 9pm which is not late at all by Acapulco standards.

March 1st, 2014 at 4:11 pm

and Grigor wins the Acapulco final!

Wow, his talent is finally showing through. Been a while, but Grigor should be counted in all the tournaments as a serious threat/dark horse.

That was a great point here too. He reminds me of Novak with his elastic legs!

March 2nd, 2014 at 3:45 am

Really glad Dimi won. Enjoy the way he plays very much……when Andy retires could well be my favourite…however a long way off, I hope. I noticed during his match against Andy his back hand was deffo his weakest shot and Andy constantly targeted it.
One of the comms said something like, “very pretty to watch, but ineffective.”
@MMT
Thoughts? BTW I think Andy is still a bit pre-occupied during matches about his back. As he gets more matches under his belt, hopefully that understandable anxiety will disappear. Also, except for the first set against Dimi, his first serve percent has been poor, and his second even worse than usual. Think that’s in part due to his back plus lack of match fitness

March 2nd, 2014 at 5:41 am

Baby fed has been playing high quality tennis in the past few months . Wins over Nole and murray , a sensational display at AO and now winning the tournament.

He will probably be in the top 8 this year- if he continues with this level of play and is able to up his mid-match consistency, he’s due for a slam maybe next year.

March 2nd, 2014 at 11:56 am

“very pretty to watch, but ineffective.”
Very true Margot.

This may work in a weak era. But not in this era of strong champions at the top.

March 2nd, 2014 at 12:40 pm

@Margot:

My personal opinion is that his backhand is not as strong as his forehand, no doubt about it, but being technically asymmetric doesn’t necessary preclude you from becoming a great player. After all, of the big 4, I would say only Djokovic is technically symmetrical (that is to say his forehand and backhand are relatively equal) although the improvements in Murray’s forehand have certainly helped his game (and in my opinion put him over the top at the US Open and Wimbledon).

Having said that there are two problems I see with Dimitrov’s backhand which (because he’s young) are easily remedied.

First, his point of contact is often too close to his body causing him to pull across his body and/or not straighten his elbow at the point of contact, both of which cause him to lose racquet head speed, power and control.

Second (and this is related to the first problem), he often doesn’t transfer his weight foreward through the point of contact. This I think will be remedied when he employs the tactics of looking to come to net whenever he can – this will help with his court positioning as well.

If you consider the variety he has on that stroke (including a couple of different types of slice, and a drop shot, flat and deep topspin) his backhand has the potential to be quite effective, but for the moment is certainly relatively weaker than his forehand.

I think his biggest problem is not technical, but tactical – that is to say, very similar to Djokovic before his 2011 rebirth, he has a tendency to drift behind the baseline and defend too readily. One thing that distinguished Rafa’s defense from Djokovic and Murray (2-3 years ago) was his capacity to transition to taking control of the point, which he did better and faster than the other two (Federer has never really defended as well as any of these three, although his defense is above average).

Dimitrov would do well to develop this capacity, because with his game, he should definitely be the aggressor in 99 out 100 matches, and on those rare occasions when he’s on the defensive, he shouldn’t rely on that. He may, from time to time, produce those highlight reel points that we’re accustomed to, but relying on his defense will not put him at the pinnacle of the game. Too many players will put him under if he does that.

Of the so-called “young guns” and their generation he is by a very long way the most talented, but he also appears to be making the most improvements from year to year.

March 3rd, 2014 at 11:46 am