Another chapter has been added to Arthur Fery‘s magical run at the Wimbledon Championships. He continues to move forward as Britain’s only hope from the men’s singles draw and has now recorded an incredible 7-5, 3-6, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 victory over Grigor Dimitrov in the fourth round. But as good as Fery’s performance was, his opponent just wasn’t good enough on the day and was criticized by fans for his display.

This result means that Dimitrov’s Round of 16 curse continues at SW19. He has now lost four consecutive matches at the same stage and hasn’t made it past since 2023. The Bulgarian gained a crucial lead in the match by winning both the second and third sets, but unexpectedly lost his rhythm in the final two sets, resulting in a disappointing defeat.

José Morgado

@josemorgado

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WOW! 🇬🇧 In the battle of wild cards, Brit Arthur Fery defeats former top 3 Grigor Dimitrov 7-5, 3-6, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(10-7) to reach an incredible #Wimbledon quarterfinal against Flavio Cobolli. The first player ranked outside the top 100 to reach the QFs at SW19 since 2014.

7:19 PM · Jul 6, 2026

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With his bid to reach the quarterfinals having ended in tears last year after he was forced to retire despite having a two-set lead over Jannik Sinner, this was a great opportunity for Dimitrov to finally break the fourth-round curse. He entered as the favorite, but Fery upset him. Dimitrov had gone neck-and-neck with Fery for most of the first set, and both held serve comfortably through the opening games, neither offering a break point. The tide turned when the local hero gained a crucial break at 5-5, and later served out the set to gain an important advantage.

But Dimitrov came back stronger in the second set. He broke at 4-3 in the eighth game, then held to level the match, which helped him close out the set and level the match. With momentum, Dimitrov broke early in the third set, forcing Fery into a corner.

But Fery refused to fold. Despite Dimitrov’s early break, the Brit fought back, but the Bulgarian eventually closed out the set and took a valuable lead. Despite his dominance, the 35-year-old unraveled in the fourth set. He was cruising towards victory after clinching a double break early in the set, but then threw away his lead and allowed Fery to get both of his breaks back. As the home crowd rallied behind him, Fery ended up making a remarkable comeback and won the set to force the match into a decider.

The decider was tight from the start. Both players made sure not to make any costly mistakes and dragged it to a tiebreaker. But Dimitrov gave away lousy points on his serve while Fery maintained his composure. He won the tiebreaker 10-7 in a match lasting 3 hours 58 minutes.

Despite being the much more experienced player, Dimitrov just couldn’t win the points when it mattered most. It wasn’t a surprise that fans were left frustrated with the way he let the match slip out of his grasp in the final two sets.

Fans slam Grigor Dimitrov after he fumbles big time at Wimbledon

A fan remarked that Dimitrov allowed Fery to get back into the match and should have wrapped it up in four sets. “You feel sorry for Dimitrov but at the same time don’t, a player of his experience should have won in 4 sets with the double break, and he allowed Fery back in to win. He has himself to blame. Dimitrov is the face of the Lost Gen, a tier below the 90s generation.”

Another fan expressed a similar sentiment about Dimitrov and showered praise on Fery for his performance. “Gutted for Dimitrov. He should’ve closed it out in 4 just like Bergs should have. SMH. Kid has guts, though, and he’s riding the wave. Rooting for Grigor so hard, especially because of last year and his fading chances, but hats off to Fery. He’s resilient.”