Grigor Dimitrov has once again found himself at the center of controversy at the 2026 Wimbledon Championships during his second-round clash against Jakub Mensik. The debate began after officials decided to close the Centre Court roof mid-match, a decision that reminded Dimitrov and many fans of a similar incident from last year.
Dimitrov began his Wimbledon campaign with a 7-6(4), 6-3, 7-5 win over Dane Sweeny before taking on Mensik in the second round. The Bulgarian eventually came through 7-6(5), 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, but not before play was halted after he had taken a two-sets-to-one lead, as officials closed the roof and delayed the match.
The interruption visibly frustrated Grigor Dimitrov, who was reminded of his fourth-round meeting with Jannik Sinner at Wimbledon last year. That match was also paused for the roof to be closed before ending in heartbreaking fashion, as Dimitrov was forced to retire while leading after suffering a serious right pectoral muscle injury.
“It’s like Deja vu,” an angry Dimitrov told the umpire. “From last year it was the same thing. When I was on Centre, we knew it was not gonna finish, and we kept on having the court open.”
Fans were quick to take to X (formerly Twitter) to express their frustration over the decision, with many fuming that Grigor Dimitrov had once again been affected by a mid-match roof closure. One user wrote:
“They scammed Dimitrov again wow.”
“And they close the f**king roof to f**k Dimitrov momentum seriously f**k the Wimbledon,” another wrote.
“Grigor Dimitrov just got absolutely hosed. They knew they were going to keep playing and didn’t start to creep the roof in. Instead he gets cold, they wait for 15 minutes and comes out in the fourth and gets broken immediately. Just a joke from Wimbledon officials there,” one account posted.
“Wimbledon s**ks,” another tweeted.
“Why can’t they play while they are closing the roof? Having a 15 to 20 min break just for closing the roof is ridiculous,” one fan commmented.
Edited by Pritha Ghosh
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