Good people deserve good things to happen to them, which is why the career of Grigor Dimitrov, one of the nicest players in tennis, is that he has been marred by so many injuries that he hasn't been able to reach his immense potential. He still has time to do something great, though.
The Bulgarian entered the 2026 Mallorca Championships hoping to get in better form for Wimbledon, which begins on Monday, June 29. After winning his first match of the tournament, he faced lucky loser qualifier Abdullah Shelbayh in the second round. While Dimitrov was the more physically skilled player, he is still shaking off some rust on grass courts, too.
The last time he played on the surface ahead of Mallorca was perhaps the most bitter defeat of his career. That was at 2025 Wimbledon, when, in the fourth round, the Bulgarian was stunning Jannik Sinner, and leading by two sets. Unfortunately, another injury happened to Dimitrov, and he had to retire from the match with a torn pec muscle.
Grigor Dimitrov rounding into form just ahead of 2026 Wimbledon
Sinner would go on to win the major, and one wonders how well Dimitrov would have done had he stayed healthy. But that has been many fans' thoughts since the Bulgarian began his career nearly 20 years ago.
Against Shelbayh, Dimitrov jumped out to an early lead in the first set and took the opener 6-2. He was moving around the court well, hitting his forehand, one of the best weapons on the ATP tour when Dimitrov is healthy, with bombast, and showing brilliant hand-to-eye coordination at the net. His Jordanian opponent appeared overwhelmed.
Yet, he wasn't ready to quit either. He kept the second set tight, even while struggling to hold serve. He doesn't have elite skills, but at 22 years old, he is young enough to know not to quit on matches and keep chasing down shots. That will help him win matches in the future that he has no business doing.
Shelbayh is likely also building confidence. The Mallorca Championships are his first ATP-sanctioned event of the year, and he snuck in through qualifying, yet he defeated the mercurial and feisty Corentin Moutet in his first-round match. He wasn't easy tennis prey for Dimitrov.
Serving at 3-4 in set two, though, Shelbayh tried to save the game on break point. He hit a well-struck serve wide, but Dimitrov was able to return it into the middle of the court. Shelbayh seemingly had an easy put-away to get back to deuce, but hit the ball long. Dimitrov failed to serve out the match. He was broken, the first break point Shelbayh had won in eight attempts in the match.
In the next game, though, Dimitrov was able to get another break and win the match. On the final point, Shelbayh hit the ball long that the Bulgarian was able to return with a shot between his legs. The Jordanian then hit the return long, and Dimitrov won the set 6-4.
Grigor Dimitrov, who will need to land more of his first serves moving forward after landing less than 50 percent in the second set, will next play Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the quarterfinals of the Mallorca Championships.
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