site.btaGrigor Dimitrov Scores Tour-leading 13th Win for 2024, Reaches Rotterdam Semi-final

Bulgaria's top male tennis player Grigor Dimitrov qualified for the semi-finals of the ATP 500 tournament in Rotterdam on Friday. His 7-6(2) 3-6 6-4 win over world No.57 Alexander Shevchenko was his 13th for the season - more than any other player in the ATP Tour.

Dimitrov finished the match with 27 winners and 30 unforced errors, winning 80% of the points on his first serve. 

In the next round Dimitrov will face the winner of the match between world No. 5 Andrey Rublev and world No. 11 Alex De Minaur. 

By reaching the semi-finals, the Bulgarian defended his ranking points from 2022 when he reached the same stage in Rotterdam.

The Race for Top 10 

Dimitrov, who is currently world No. 13, has a chance to return to world's top 10 for the first time since November 2018 when the rankings are updated on February 19 (they are updated each Monday).

On February 12, the best Bulgarian tennis player was 120 points away from tenth-ranked Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas, who will lose 35 points as he is not participating in any tournament this week and lost in the round of 16 in Rotterdam in 2023. Ninth-ranked Taylor Fritz was 245 points away but is defending 250 points in Delray Beach (ATP 250) as he won the competition last year - he will play in the quarter-finals there early on Saturday.

If Dimitrov secures a spot in the final, he will add another 120 points to his tally and will pass Tsitsipas in the standings. However, the race for the 9th and 10th places also includes Fritz and Australian Alex De Minaur who is currently world No. 11 with a 65 points lead over Dimitrov. Their results this week will affect Dimitrov's chances to enter the top 10.

In 2023, De Minaur lost to the Bulgarian in the quarter-finals in Rotterdam. If he qualifies for the semi-finals on Friday he will earn 90 points and will face Dimitrov.

If Dimitrov wins the tournament this week, he will add a total of 320 points to his tally, which will guarantee his place ahead of Fritz, De Minaur and Tsitsipas and shoot him to No. 9 on Monday.