Grigor Dimitrov Bulgarian national looked in a hurry to get off the court when the dark clouds covered the Geneva Open.
However the storm turned out to be coming from the other side of the net for the fourth seed, after her Geneva Open second-round opponent Ilya Ivashka threatened to turn things around 6-4, 5-0.
The world number 20 overcame tensions when it was most needed before beating Belarusian Ivashka 6-4 6-4, a victory that sent the Bulgarian national to the fourth quarter-final of the 2021 season.
READ ALSO : Jannik Sinner Will Not Let Aslan Karatsev Go Any Further In Lyon
“It’s been a really positive day for me, I am very happy with the way I am fighting,” exclaimed Grigor Dimitrov, who won his first meeting against world number 91 Ivashka.
“I was unlucky in the last two or three games I played in Madrid and Rome. Then I felt I was lacking a few points so I lost that game.”
“It can break my spirits, but I’m very grateful that I got the opportunity to compete here again. Getting wildcards means a lot to me, so, I really want to execute every chance I get when I’m on the pitch. “
Dimitrov is looking forward to a winner between French national Arthur Cazaux or Uruguay national Pablo Cuevas to be his opponent in the quarter-finals of the Geneva Open.
The match of the two players had to be postponed due to rain when Cuevas took the lead 6-2, 4-3.
In other action, third seed Casper Ruud secured a ticket to the Geneva Open quarter-finals thanks to a 7-5, 6-2 win over American Tennys Sandgren.
Norwegian national Ruud arrived in Geneva with some convincing results in clay-court tournaments after he progressed to the semifinals at the Monte Carlo Open, Munich Open and Madrid Open.
22-year-old Ruud brings the momentum to life in his Geneva Open opener against world number 67 Sandgren.
Swinging into the sixth straight quarter-final since playing in Acapulco in March, Ruud will next face German national Dominik Koepfer who beat veteran Spain Feliciano Lopez 7-5, 6-7, 6-3.
Second seed Denis Shapovalov will have to wait a little longer to play the second round of the Geneva Open against Italian national Marco Ceccinato after their match was rescheduled due to rain.
The winners between the two players will meet the sixth seed Fabio Fognini or the Serbian Laslo Djere in the quarter-finals. Djere were leading 6-3, 6-7, 2-0 when their match was forced to be postponed.
