I'm not baby Fed anymore, says Dimitrov

Nov 17, 2017 06:00 am

Grigor Dimitrov insists he is no longer playing in Roger Federer's shadow after the Bulgarian capped the best year of his checkered career by reaching the last four at the ATP Tour Finals.

When Dimitrov first burst on to the scene by winning the junior Wimbledon title in 2008, his immaculate one-handed backhand and flamboyant stroke-play earned instant comparisons with Swiss great Federer.

But Dimitrov struggled to live up to the hype and often found himself written off as a serial underachiever.

However, by becoming the first Bulgarian to qualify for the season-ending Tour Finals after reaching a career-high sixth in the ATP rankings earlier this month, it seems that he has finally shaken off his demons.

Since then, he has enjoyed victories over Dominic Thiem and David Goffin, the Belgian crushed 6-0, 6-2 on Wednesday, to book his place in the semi-finals at London's O2 Arena.

Asked if he felt free of the Federer comparisons, Dimitrov said: "They don't really matter any more. I'm really looking at what I'm doing right. It is wrong to try to follow somebody else." - AFP