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Grigor Dimitrov stunned, knocked out of Dubai by Malek Jaziri

By Harry Floyd

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 23: Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria plays a forehand in his quarter-final match against Kyle Edmund of Great Britain on day nine of the 2018 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 23, 2018 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Paul Rovere/Getty Images)
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 23: Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria plays a forehand in his quarter-final match against Kyle Edmund of Great Britain on day nine of the 2018 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 23, 2018 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Paul Rovere/Getty Images) /
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Grigor Dimitrov is out of the Dubai Tennis Championships after his opening round match. Malek Jaziri stuns the top seeded Dimitrov.

Grigor Dimitrov sees an extremely unexpected exit from the 2018 Dubai Tennis Championships. The Bulgarian came into Dubai as the tournament’s top seed. He is the current world No. 4 in men’s singles tennis, sitting behind just Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Marin Cilic. None of the ATP’s Top 3 are in action in Dubai, which made Dimitrov the player to beat.

Malek Jaziri, a veteran tennis player from Tunisia stuns Dimitrov in the round of 32. The Tunisian tennis player now faces Robin Haase next at the Dubai Tennis Championships. Jaziri defeats Dimitrov in a hard-fought three set epic, winning 4-6, 7-5, 6-4.

Rising to the occasion, Jaziri now opens up the path to a title for several other players. Second seed Lucas Pouille wins his opener and remains alive, but it is clear that anything can happen this week at the ATP World Tour 500 tournament.

Related Story: Federer: 2018 AusOpen Photos

Grigor Dimitrov, the tournament’s top seed, is ousted during his opener against Malek Jaziri of Tunisia.

The world No. 4 must rebound from his loss in Dubai. While he will remain within the ATP Top 10, several players are right on his heels in terms of points. Depending on how action unfolds around the globe this week in men’s singles tennis, he could find himself slipping in the rankings. As for Jaziri, he is the current world No. 117 in the men’s singles rankings. While he has reached as high as the world No. 47 position before, Jaziri is yet to notch a singles title on tour. The 34-year-old will likely see a massive jump in the rankings if he can continue on at the 2018 Dubai Tennis Championships.

Next: French Open Predictions & Favorites

Check back to see how Grigor Dimitrov responds to his opening round loss. He will need to find his rhythm in the coming weeks if he hopes to make a push mid-year at the 2018 French Open. Dimitrov won the ATP Finals in London last year and hopes to add a Grand Slam title to his resume in the near future. Last year, he fell in the third round of play at Roland Garros. Stay tuned to see how the men’s singles field shakes out at the 2018 Dubai Tennis Championships throughout the rest of the week.

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