Dimitrov suffered a torn pectoral muscle - Photo: REUTERS
What happened to Dimitrov?
Leading the world number 1 opponent with a score of 6-3, 7-5 and in the third set, Dimitrov suddenly held his chest after a strong serve and sat down on the court in pain.
The Bulgarian player then could not continue the match, quietly shook hands with his opponent and left the court in the regret of the audience, while Sinner advanced to the quarter-finals in a disappointing way.
Up to now, Dimitrov has not made any official announcement, but many major media outlets such as ESPN, The Guardian, AP or Bild have all agreed that he has suffered a serious injury to his right pectoral muscle.
The situation where he served the ball while turning his body at high speed was believed to be the direct cause of the chest muscle fibers being stretched or even torn, leading to severe chest pain and the inability to continue moving the arm normally.
Some sports medicine experts are concerned that this could be a serious injury that could take weeks to months to fully recover.
According to experts of Hindustan Times, if the pectoralis major muscle fibers are torn, the athlete will have to rest for at least 6 to 10 weeks, in some cases surgery is needed if the tear spreads or the muscle tendon connecting to the humerus is severed.
Dimitrov was once ranked in the world's top 5 and reached the semi-finals of major tournaments several times, but his form has been erratic in recent times due to constant physical problems. At 33, an injury like this could be the end of his career.
What is the cause?
According to ESPN analysis, chest muscle injuries in tennis players mainly come from two groups of causes.
Firstly, there is the extreme mechanical impact when performing a high-speed serve with a twisting force that rotates the entire upper body, while the chest muscles are stretched to the limit.
Second, it is due to the accumulation of micro-trauma over a long period of time without recovery time, causing the muscle structure to gradually weaken and tear easily in a moment of sudden muscle strain.
Another factor that many experts have mentioned is the risk of overcrowding in the unusual weather conditions at Wimbledon this year.
Overload, weather, and strong hits and sudden turns were the reasons that caused Dimitrov to collapse - Photo: REUTERS
According to reports from Reuters and The Guardian, Wimbledon 2025 is experiencing rare hot days, with temperatures ranging from 32–34°C over the past week.
WBGT – an index reflecting the body's heat stress level – repeatedly exceeded the allowable threshold, forcing the organizers to apply a rule of taking a break between matches so that the players could cool down with cold towels.
However, medical experts say that these measures only help soothe the body's surface and cannot prevent intracellular dehydration and deep muscle contraction disorders.
The body when competing continuously under high heat will accumulate fatigue, reflexes will be less accurate, easily leading to incorrect posture or muscles will no longer be able to withstand maximum load - which is very dangerous for movements that require compression and rotation such as serving.
In Dimitrov's case, he has gone through a series of consecutive matches in harsh weather without a long rest day, combined with his age and injury history, the possibility of chest muscle damage due to overload is completely reasonable.
Dimitrov is currently undergoing an MRI scan to further assess the extent of the muscle damage. Meanwhile, Sinner, the winner, also revealed that he has a slight pain in his right elbow due to a fall during the match and will undergo a medical examination on July 9.
Chest trauma accounts for approximately 25% of traumatic deaths in the United States. Many chest injuries are fatal within the first minutes or hours of injury; these injuries can often be treated on the spot with definitive or palliative measures that do not require advanced surgical training.
However, the risk of death from a torn pectoral muscle - which is probably the injury Dimitrov suffered - is low.
HUY DANG
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/thoi-tiet-da-dua-dimitrov-den-quy-mon-quan-20250708135942417.htm
Comment (0)