ATP Tour

Dimitrov joins Nadal on Bastad list following opening win

Grigor Dimitrov continued his impressive recent form on Tuesday at the Nordea Open in Bastad, where he rallied past Dalibor Svrcina 7-6(5), 1-6, 6-4 to reach the second round at the ATP 250 clay-court event.

Dimitrov enjoyed a run to the fourth round at Wimbledon earlier this month and quickly adjusted to the clay in Bastad, where he advanced to the semi-finals in 2012 and 2013, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index. Competing at the tournament for the first time since 2013, the 35-year-old battled back from 3-5 in the first set and recovered from squandering a break advantage in the third set to advance after two hours and 24 minutes.

"It is extremely different conditions from where I have come from and I am at an age where I think I need some extra days but I think today it was all about fight," Dimitrov said. "I didn't feel like I was on top of my game but he was a hell of a competitor, so fast around the court and did so many drop shots. He really went for his shots, so I had to really count on my experience and really press when I really had to."

Dimitrov is the second-oldest match winner in Bastad this decade behind then-38-year-old Rafael Nadal, who reached the final in 2024. Dimitrov will next meet fifth seed and 2024 champion Nuno Borges, who beat French wild card Moise Kouame 6-4, 6-2.

Earlier, the No. 138 player in the PIF ATP Rankings Andrea Pellegrino overcame #NextGenATP Norwegian Nicolai Budov Kjaer 6-3, 6-2 to earn his first tour-level win since he defeated Frances Tiafoe in the fourth round at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome in May. Pellegrino will next take on top seed Andrey Rublev.

There were also wins for seeds Botic van de Zandschulp and Thiago Agustin Tirante. Sixth seed Van de Zandschulp eliminated Japanese qualifier Taro Daniel 7-6(0), 6-4 and Tirante beat Sebastian Ofner 6-3, 6-4.