Grigor Dimitrov moved to within one win of capturing his second tour-level title of the season on Saturday when he defeated past Karen Khachanov 6-7(3), 6-4, 7-6(5) in an Open 13 Provence semi-final thriller.
In a three-hour battle, Dimitrov outlasted Khachanov in a series of gruelling baseline exchanges, using his slice to good effect to disrupt his big-hitting opponent and reach his 19th tour-level final.
“He totally outplayed me in the first set,” Dimitrov said. “I was making a lot of mistakes. I kept on fighting, kept on staying. It was the only thing I could do in moments like that. I was a little down on myself as my shots weren’t there and not accurate enough and he kept on putting a lot of pressure behind me and hitting a lot of good shots, so I was constantly on the back foot.
“A few points here and there made the difference. Nothing else. The match was such a mental battle for both of us. I kept on staying there and believing and I was just trying to win. I am very happy to be in the final. It is important for me.”
The Bulgarian, who won his first tour-level trophy since 2017 in Brisbane earlier this year, rallied from 2/4 in the third-set tie-break before converting on his second match point to improve to 4-0 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series.
Dimitrov will compete for his 10th tour-level title on Sunday when he faces Ugo Humbert. If the second seed triumphs, he will be the first player this year to win multiple tour-level crowns. He would also move to No. 11 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, just 35 points 10th-placed Stefanos Tsitsipas.
The last time Dimitrov was in the Top 10 was in October 2018. He is already the first player in 2024 to advance to multiple title matches.
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