Can Grigor Dimitrov live up to his potential this year?

Grigor Dimitrov begins 2014 with high hopes for a standout season after rising to a new career high of 23 at the end of last season, displaying a consistency which he’d never quite been able to muster before. But not consistent enough to cause a big concern to the big guns. So far in his career Dimitrov has chronically underachieved in the grand slams. He made the third round at the French Open last June but was soundly beaten by Novak Djokovic in straight sets and went out early at the other three slams. In 13 grand slams he had reached the third round only once. Not a good return for a player predicted to be a future World Number One.

His growing army of fans will be hoping that the appointment of new coach Roger Rasheed, a man with a reputation for enforcing hard work and discipline and who has already worked with stars like Lleyton Hewitt, Jo-Wilfred Tsonga and Gel Monfils, can give Dimitrov the extra steel he needs to go with his undoubted natural talent. A former junior Wimbledon and US Open champion, Dimitrov has got his season underway, beginning his campaign in Brisbane with an impressive straight sets win over Robin Haase in the first round but he was eliminated in the 2nd round. Despite the loss, a testing pre-season saw the first long-term foundations laid.

There’s not a big difference between the top 10 and the players ranked in the 20s and 30s, but there’s always just a little something that they come up with or they bring it out when they really have to, whether it’s on a break point or they’re being put under pressure. As the saying goes, “Trifles are what make perfection but perfection is no trifle.”

While Dimitrov’s stylish one-handed backhand has earned him perhaps too many comparisons to all-time great Roger Federer, there’s still quite a lot about the Bulgarian’s game that needs improving. Dimitrov’s mental strength, not only in tight matches but just in tight sets, has long been considered a glaring weakness. Dimitrov has been unable to finish off tight matches when he held an advantageous position and that has further strengthened Dimitrov’s reputation as being a flashy player to watch, but not good enough to really beat the elite when it mattered. If Dimitrov can become mentally tough against the elite in future matches, then he will certainly distance himself from many of the pretenders in the rest of the ATP Tour who simply don’t believe that they can beat the very best.

The other area that Dimitrov continues to struggle, as evidenced in the matches which goes long, is with cramping. When he has to grind it out for several hours, Dimitrov often becomes afflicted with lower body cramps. Whether this is due to poor conditioning, lack of hydration, nerves or a combination of all three is hard to say. He overcomes this problem to a certain extent in the best of three matches, but it is in best of five matches at the Majors that he has yet to prove himself when his body starts to betray him. Until he is not ready to go all out like Djokovic, Federer, Murray, Nadal are able to do deep in a fifth set, he won’t be able to realize his full potential.

Dimitrov seems to earn more headlines for being the boyfriend of tennis superstar Maria Sharapova than for his tennis. Dimitrov seems uncomfortable with all of the added attention, but that’s what happens when your on-court life is viewed as more important than what you do on the court. However this should not act as a deterrent to his career.

With a great one handed backhand that tennis purists love, an ability to grind in rallies, an all court game that suits every surface, Dimitrov looks poised to make an even bigger move this year but for this to happen he must improve his mental toughness and physical conditioning to grind out for several hours. At 22 years old, Dimitrov can no longer hide behind the veil of potential. After years as being touted as “one to watch” and then burdened with a nickname “Baby Fed” that is extremely difficult for anyone to live up to, Grigor Dimitrov has to prove that he is ready to stand on his own and not be compared to anyone else but himself. Dimitrov appears poised to proceed past the second round at a major when the Australian Open kicks off in a week’s time. Aggressive players are rewarded on tour, which is why the future is bright for Dimitrov, who is set to make 2014 the best year of his young career.