Jannik Sinner has boldly advanced to the quarter-finals of Wimbledon, albeit under dramatic circumstances. After suffering a fall that resulted in a right elbow injury and initially trailing Grigor Dimitrov by two sets, Sinner’s opponent was forced to withdraw due to a pectoral muscle injury while locked in a tightly contested third set.
Sinner, the top seed, had not lost a set throughout the tournament until the match against the 19th-seeded Dimitrov, who took the first two sets 6-3, 7-5. However, midway through the third set, with the score level at 2-all, Dimitrov abruptly stopped playing, clutching his chest in discomfort before signalling for medical assistance.
Tragically, this latest withdrawal marks the fifth consecutive Grand Slam tournament where Dimitrov has been unable to complete a match, a trend that began at this year’s Australian Open and continued through Roland-Garros, last year’s Wimbledon, and the US Open. As Dimitrov communicated his injury to Sinner, the young Italian exhibited sportsmanship by approaching his opponent to offer support.
Prior to this incident, Sinner faced his own scare when he slipped during the opening game of the match, injuring himself while trying to recover. A medical timeout in the second set saw him receive treatment for his elbow, much to the concern of his coaching team. Despite grimacing during play, Sinner managed to continue after taking medication to alleviate the pain.
Following a delay due to the stadium’s retractable roof being closed—something two-time winner Andy Murray critiqued as unnecessary given the remaining daylight—the match was concluded within a half-hour. Sinner is now set to face No. 10 Ben Shelton for a place in the semi-finals, a challenging encounter that adds to Sinner’s already impressive tally, having previously lost just 17 games in the tournament, equalling the record for the fewest games lost by a man at Wimbledon in the Open era through three completed matches.