What happened to Grigor Dimitrov in Australian Open 2025 1R? All you need to know about the unfortunate development

Grigor Dimitrov's 2025 Australian Open campaign ended prematurely as he was forced to retire from the year's first Major mid-match during his first-round encounter against lucky loser Francesco Passaro. Dimitrov had lost the first set 5-7 and was trailing the the Italian 1-2 in the second when he decided to retire.

Dimitrov, a former World No. 3, was initially supposed to face Fabio Fognini in the the first round of the 2025 Australian Open. However, Fognini pulled out of the tournament, which led to compatriot Passaro making his way into the main draw as a lucky loser. The Italian fired five aces and converted two out of four break point opportunities. Meanwhile, Dimitrov struggled on serve, hitting four double faults.

After losing the first set, Grigor Dimitrov, clearly in discomfort due to a lower hip issue, called for the physio. The Bulgarian initially decided to continue playing, but after three second-set games, decided to ultimately retire. As per reports, the World No. 10's injury is similar to the one he sustained during his 2025 Brisbane International semifinal against eventual champion Jiri Lehecka.

Dimitrov, widely regarded for his expansive and all-court playing style, is a three-time Major semifinalist, having reached the semifinals of the Wimbledon Championships (2014), the Australian Open (2017), and the US Open (2019). However, right now, it feels like the now-33-year-old's ambitions of ending his Grand Slam duck are slowly but surely disintegrating.

Australian Open 2025 marks 3rd consecutive Grand Slam where Grigor Dimitrov has retired

Grigor Dimitrov (Source: Getty)

At the 2024 Wimbledon Championships, Grigor Dimitrov locked horns with Daniil Medvedev for a place in the quarterfinals. With the Russian leading the Bulgarian 5-3 in the first set, the latter retired with a knee injury, which stemmed from an accidental slip from him when the scoreline was at 3-2 in Medvedev's favor. Dimitrov's injury was one of several high-profile injuries at the grasscourt Major last year.

Two months later at the US Open, Dimitrov reached the quarterfinals, where he faced home hope Frances Tiafoe. Once again though, the Bulgarian's tournament ended with an injury-stricken, mid-match retirement. This time around, he experienced a leg injury, and his retirement came with the scoreline at 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-3, 4-1 in Tiafoe's favor.

After the match, Dimitrov remained optimistic about the future, saying at a press conference:

"I mean, for sure I take it and I hurt with it, yeah, you have to. I don't want to just, like, brush it off, like, 'That's fine, no, I put it aside,' Of course you want to be here and fight for the trophy, but, you know, there's always a brighter future in that sense. So will I hurt? Yeah, for sure. Of course. And it should. But I just don't want to just put it aside. I just want to also reassess myself and everything that l've been going through."

Dimitrov was once hailed as 'Baby Federer' due to the resemblance of his playing style to that of the legendary Roger Federer. However, the Bulgarian himself distanced himself from the nickname in a candid confession last year.