"I never left, I am not going anywhere" - Grigor Dimitrov makes a statement after stunning Carlos Alcaraz at Shanghai Masters

Grigor Dimitrov made a firm statement as he knocked Carlos Alcaraz out of the Shanghai Masters title contention.

Dimitrov pulled off a massive 5-7, 6-2, 6-4 comeback upset over Alcaraz in the fourth round of the Shanghai Masters on Wednesday, October 11. Doing so, he registered his biggest win of the season and his first one over the Spaniard.

The Bulgarian had lost their initial three battles; two of those losses came earlier this year -- at the Queen’s Club Championships and the Madrid Open, where Carlos Alcaraz was the eventual champion. Grigor Dimitrov is now one of seven people to have defeated the World No. 2 this season.

The 2017 Cincinnati Masters champion, who hasn’t won a title since claiming his eighth trophy at the ATP Finals that year, spoke afterwards about his longevity and warned the tour about his intentions.

“I never left. 15 years already. So, I am still here. I am not going anywhere,” the 32-year-old said in his on-court interview after the Shanghai Masters fourth round win.

Dimitrov also revealed his approach going into the high-stakes encounter. He said that he had mapped out a strategy against Carlos Alcaraz, and decided to carry on with self-belief, even if it meant winning ugly.

“Believing in the game. I knew what I had to do against him. I knew I had to apply constant pressure against him, even if I was down, even if my shots were not good enough. I had to keep on putting him in an uncomfortable position. He is the player that doesn’t like to be on a back foot. I mean, which player does, right?” Dimitrov remarked.

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"I kept on using every opportunity I had" – Grigor Dimitrov on Shanghai Masters victory over Carlos Alcaraz

Carlos Alcaraz and Grigor Dimitrov at the Shanghai Masters

Grigor Dimitrov dominated the Shanghai Masters encounter since the beginning. He was the first to break in the opening set to get a 3-2 lead. However, two faulty service games at the tail-end of the set put the former World No. 3 in a precarious situation as Carlos Alcaraz quickly earned a set lead.

Dimitrov bounced back almost immediately as he broke the Spaniard in the first game of the second set. The Bulgarian kept his moment going throughout the match, not gifting a single break to the Spaniard thereafter. He converted a staggering 80% of his break points on the night.

“I kept on using every opportunity I had. I was coming in also quite a little bit and just trying to put him in an awkward position – not just a typical shot, and I think also that rattled him a little bit. I think some of the errors in the third set came from that,” the World No. 19 said.

Grigor Dimitrov has now set up a Shanghai Masters quarterfinals clash with Chile’s Nicolas Jarry, who incidentally denied him his first title in six years by winning the Geneva Open final earlier this year.