Diego Schwatzman “won” the first ATP title of his career on Sunday, but Grigor Dimitrov made sure there would be no room for anyone to talk about that aspect of the Istanbul Open final.
Dimitrov incurred three penalties for racket abuse, the first of which resulted in nothing more than a warning. Outburst No. 2 netted the 29th-ranked Bulgarian a point penalty. The third and final transgression came with the automatic loss of a game, and it occurred with Dimitrov serving to stay in the match at 0-5 in the third set. And that is how it all ended, giving Schwartzman a come-from-behind 6-7(5), 7-6(4), 6-0 triumph.
The unseeded Argentine once trailed by a set and 5-2 in the second.
“I let my family down, I let my team down, I let my fans down with that kind of behavior which I definitely apologize for,” Dimitrov said during the trophy ceremony.
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VIDEO: Grigor Dimitrov loses Istanbul Open championship after racquet-destroying meltdown https://t.co/syWnZCr1oW pic.twitter.com/8MG872l8rv
— Deadspin (@Deadspin) May 1, 2016
It wasn’t the first time Dimitrov melted down in Istanbul. In his opening match against Adrian Ungur, the No. 2 seed completely obliterated his racket late in the second set. Dimitrov eventually survived that contest 7-5, 4-6, 7-5.
truly unbelievable pic.twitter.com/mdj2qeNhaf
— Ricky Dimon (@Dimonator) April 28, 2016
replay pic.twitter.com/kmmuXoEfKC
— Ricky Dimon (@Dimonator) April 28, 2016
folding lessons pic.twitter.com/UGO46T4vZd
— The Grandstand (@TennGrand) April 28, 2016
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absolutely unbelievable scenes
May be he is undergoing a tough time in his personal life and losing a match like this was toooo frustrating. I don’t know…but whatever it is, this type of behavior is plain UGLY and inexcusable…can’t believe he did that. I can expect this from Kyrgios but not Dimitrov :s
and to think that I lost $3500 when this clown actually beat Murray last month in Miami .. sigh
Just dreadful. Suspend him and send him to anger management classes.
Truly strange but he harmed only himself and his rackets. Only thing I can think of is that he had 5 (I think) strings break during the match, which is really unusual in these days of frequent racket changes and poly strings. Maybe that set him off.
I think I am the only one who thought it was comical. If you are going to go down, go down in style, and he certainly did that. he’ll probably be fined as expected, but what a finish!
These guys are so politically correct these days and Novak wins everything, it’s a little boring.
We will remember this
It was not only his racquet strings that snapped. I doubt even he knows why he lost total control like that. I was impressed however by his dignified and brave apology during the presentation ceremony. That can’t have been easy for him. I’m sure being labelled Baby Fed has been an albatross around his neck but it’s worth remembering that Federer himself started his career as an obnoxious brat before he reinvented himself as the Mr. Suave of tennis. Even until relatively recently cracks in his elder statesman demeanour were not unknown.
What on earth does this have to do with Fed? He stopped throwing rackets by 19. Dimi is 24 and no longer the beginning of his career.
Also, since you brought him for no reason, Fed used to be compared to Sampras in his early days. These comparisons are common in tennis. Doesn’t justify Dimi’s lack of commitment to the sport. Sheesh. Nadal fanboys are the masters of strawmen/ non-sequitors.
And your the master at rising to the bait.
Happy St. Roger’s Day again!
Absolutely hilarious. He didn’t swear in Serbian, yell at the ball boy or hurt anyone.
I think Dimi will grab playing Djoko in the 1st round at RG with both hands as Djoko didn’t win his first match I looked.
I think Dimi will grab playing Djoko in the 1st round at RG with both hands as Djoko didn’t win his first match last time I looked.