“Brought A Lot To Bulgarian Tennis”: Denis Shapovalov Lauds Grigor Dimitrov For His Contributions

Published 11/09/2020, 11:24 AM EST

The Sofia Open 2020 has begun in grand fashion. Tennis fans will be treated to back-to-back ATP action as the Paris Bercy Masters just concluded. Denis Shapovalov, who is competing at the Sofia Open, attended a pre-match press conference when he hailed Grigor Dimitrov for his contributions to tennis.

Sofia Open takes place in Bulgaria, which is the home of Dimitrov. He won the second edition of the tournament in 2017 and has been a prominent figure in developing tennis in Bulgaria.

Denis Shapovalov was asked about Dimitrov in a recent press conference at the Sofia Open as the two are good friends in the ATP circuit. “Grigor has been around for so many years. He’s an amazing player and I feel like he’s definitely brought a lot to Bulgarian tennis”, said Shapovalov.

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“I see so many young guys actually coming up now from Bulgaria; Adrian [Andreev] is one of them. So it is pretty amazing what he’s been able to do for the country,” he added.

Furthermore, Denis Shapovalov gave credit to the Sofia Open organizers for pulling together a wonderful atmosphere amid difficult times. “Even the facilities here it’s really beautiful. The stadium here, they’ve done such a great job,” Shapovalov mentioned.

Denis Shapovalov at Sofia Open 2020

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The Sofia Open is always an exciting tournament as no champion has won it twice, ever. To continue this trend, we will see a new champion this year as well. Shapovalov enters the tournament as the #1 seed, followed by compatriot Felix-Auger Aliassime ranked at #2.

Due to the severity of the pandemic, the Sofia Open will be the last regular event in the ATP calendar. There are top players excluding the top two seeds who are also eying the crown in Bulgaria.

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Moreover, Marin Cilic, Alex Di Minaur, and plenty of others are part of the draw which makes it extremely difficult to predict the outcome of this tournament. However, Shapovalov is the favorite this year to win the Bulgarian tournament.

The World No.12 amassed some memorable victories in 2020 including a win against Stan Wawrinka at the St. Petersburg Open. Shapovalov takes on 30-year-old Moldovan tennis player Radu Albot in his first match at Sofia Open 2020.

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Arjun Athreya is a senior writer at Essentially Sports and has been contributing since early 2020. Having developed an avid interest in sports at an early age, he pursued a Journalism degree and graduated from Madras Christian College. Arjun manages the Golf division and its content, and primarily covers news pertaining to the NBA as well.

“Brought A Lot To Bulgarian Tennis”: Denis Shapovalov Lauds Grigor Dimitrov For His Contributions

Denis Shapovalov at Sofia Open 2020

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