Jim Courier shares his honest opinion on Grigor Dimitrov’s future after heartbreaking Wimbledon injury

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Grigor Dimitrov’s Wimbledon dreams were shattered during his fourth-round match, as he suffered yet another injury.

Shocking the tennis world, Dimitrov took a two-set lead over world number one Jannik Sinner on Centre Court in their last 16 clash.

Holding serve at 2-2 in the third set, Dimitrov injured his pectoral muscle, and subsequently retired from the match.

Having been just one set away from a Wimbledon quarterfinal appearance, Dimitrov is now likely set for a spell on the sidelines, worrying news for the 34-year-old Bulgarian.

Reacting to the devastating news, former world number one Jim Courier shared his thoughts on Dimitrov’s future in tennis.

Jim Courier doesn’t know ‘how many more chances’ Grigor Dimitrov will have at Grand Slams

Appearing as a guest on the Tennis Channel, Courier gave his verdict on the world number 21’s latest injury.

“It’s so depressing to see this. [Grigor] Dimitrov, you just saw how well he can play when healthy,” he said.

“Five consecutive majors he has not been able to finish a match in, and it’s not the same injury that keeps appearing.

“Different injuries keep popping up, it was the groin last year against [Daniil] Medvedev.”

Courier claimed he had never seen an injury like this before, as Dimitrov damaged his pectoral muscle during a routine serve.

“This pec injury, honestly, I don’t know that I’ve ever seen anything quite like it,” he said.

“He hit the volley and then immediately referenced the pec. The next serve was 96 miles per hour, that was the last shot he would hit, which was an ace by the way, to level it at two apiece.”

Sharing his thoughts on Dimitrov’s rotten injury luck, Courier questioned how many more chances he will get to compete at the four majors.

“This guy has been hard done, he’s 34 years old, I don’t know how many more chances he’s going to get to go deep in majors,” he said.

“Damn, the injury gods owe this guy something.”

Retiring mid-match against Sinner, Dimitrov missed out on a chance to reach his ninth career Grand Slam quarterfinal.

Grigor Dimitrov’s Grand Slam record

Dimitrov has enjoyed a solid Grand Slam career, reaching the quarterfinals of all four major tournaments.

On three occasions Dimitrov qualified for the semi-finals, but how close has he been to a Grand Slam final?

• 2014 Wimbledon SF – Grigor Dimitrov lost to Novak Djokovic, 4-6, 6-3, 6-7, 6-7
• 2017 Australian Open SF – Grigor Dimitrov lost to Rafael Nadal, 3-6, 7-5, 6-7, 7-6, 4-6
• 2019 US Open SF – Grigor Dimitrov lost to Daniil Medvedev, 6-7, 4-6, 3-6

The Bulgarian narrowly missed out on a place in the Australian Open final eight years ago when he fell to Rafael Nadal in a five-set thriller.

Level at 4-4 in the deciding set, Dimitrov gave up a break to Nadal as the Spaniard booked his place in the final where he lost to Roger Federer.

It remains to be seen whether Dimitrov will return to the last four of a Grand Slam, but with his latest injury, the bigger question is whether or not he will be fit to compete in New York later this year.

Remarkably, Dimitrov hasn’t missed a Grand Slam tournament since he began consistently qualifying for the events in 2011.

His streak of 55 consecutive Slam appearances could be about to end as we await an injury update from the former world number three.

Only time will tell if Dimitrov will be a member of the 128-man field when the US Open begins on Sunday, August 24.