"Unfortunately, 10 years made a huge difference" - Grigor Dimitrov jokes about 'Fountain of Youth' regret after Miami Open final loss to Jannik Sinner

Grigor Dimitrov's excellent run at the 2024 Miami Open came to an end at the hands of Jannik Sinner, who emerged victorious in their title contest on March 31.

Grigor Dimitrov was seeded No. 11 at the 2024 Miami Open and defeated three top-10 players to reach the final of the tournament for the first time in his career. Unfortunately, the Bulgarian was given no breathing room by Jannik Sinner, who broke him twice in both sets and saved the only breakpoint on his serve to win the final of the Masters 1000 tournament 6-3, 6-1.

After the title contest, Dimitrov reflected on his performances and was pleased with his campaign at Miami, where he has, by his admission, not performed well in the past. The 32-year-old looked back on his near exit in the second round and was happy with his tenacity throughout the competition.

During his post-match press conference, Dimitrov was asked about rediscovering his "fountain of youth" at Miami as he joked that he should have drank another glass from that fountain to bridge the 10-year divide between him and Jannik Sinner in the final.

"Thank you. I should have had maybe one more glass of that juice. Unfortunately, 10 years made a huge difference today (smiling). But overall, I just want to focus on the positives this week. It's been a tournament I have not been able to do well I think in the past years. In a way, it was also a goal of mine to come out here and give my best shot," Dimitrov said.

"I was extremely determined throughout the whole week. A lot has been happening also behind the scenes, and beating very good players, I mean, high-quality players, let's don't forget I was down a set and 5-2 in the tiebreaker in the first round. So a lot of positives for me, honestly," he added.

"Clearly, it's Jannik Sinner's week" - Grigor Dimitrov after Miami Open final

Grigor Dimitrov

Grigor Dimitrov praised Jannik Sinner for his performances throughout the 2024 Miami Open and was impressed by his ability to remain consistent with his level this year. The young Italian won his maiden Grand Slam title at the 2024 Australian Open and then lifted the trophy at the ABN AMRO Open. With his triumph in Miami, Sinner will become the new World No. 2.

As for his performance in the final, Dimitrov hoped to move past it and prepare for the clay season. The former ATP Finals champion looked forward to utilizing the time off until his next tournament to evaluate his performance in Florida.

"Clearly it's Jannik's week. He's been playing amazing tennis. It's really impressive how he's been able to keep that way of playing. Yeah, I need to look forward to whatever is next for me. I don't think I have much time to be down on myself. I just want to embrace this moment as well. Just as you win, you need to be able to handle matches like that, I think even better than winning those type of matches," Grigor Dimitrov said.

He continued, "So I think this is the next step for me. Now we start with the clay, so this is something I'm looking forward to. Yeah, I think definitely I will have some days off to evaluate, see what I did good, what I could have done better and so forth. I think, you know, overall it's a very positive two weeks for me."

At the Miami Open, Grigor Dimitrov received a first-round bye and defeated Alejandro Tabilo, Yannick Hanfmann, Hubert Hurkacz, Carlos Alcaraz, and Alexander Zverev before losing to Sinner. The Bulgarian will re-enter the top 10 of the ATP Ranking after 283 weeks.