ATP World Tour Finals: Gritty Dimitrov stuns Dominic Thiem in London

Grigor Dimitrov launched his bid for glory at the ATP Finals yesterday with a 6-3, 5-7, 7-5 victory over Dominic Thiem. A single break was enough for Bulgaria's Dimitrov to take the first set, with Thiem only managing to land 37 percent of first serves in front of a sizeable crowd at London's O2 Arena. In a tight second set, sixth seed Dimitrov earned a potentially decisive break point in the 11th game but Thiem, whose service numbers improved significantly, held firm, lashing a forehand winner down the line and edging ahead 6-5.

Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov is ecstatic after beating Austria's Dominic Thiem in a World Tour Finals match in London yesterday. pic/AFP

In a topsy-turvy decider, Dimitrov served for the match but blew his chance as Thiem broke back to level the set at 5-5. But the Bulgarian hit back to break his opponent and, despite squandering two match points, held his nerve to close out the match.