Wimbledon 2026 pages
Sports · Wimbledon 2026 · Men's Singles · Round of 32
Grigor Dimitrov vs Matteo Berrettini — 6-3 6-4 3-6 5-7 6-3
 Grigor Dimitrov✓ | 6 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 6 |
 Matteo Berrettini | 3 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 3 |
Final · Saturday, July 4, 2026 · Round of 32
Result
Dimitrov, the 146th-ranked wild card, produced the run of the tournament, outlasting Berrettini 6-3 6-4 3-6 5-7 6-3 across three and a half hours on Centre Court. Berrettini's serve did its work — 23 aces, 49 winners — but he won only 35% behind his second delivery and gave away 43 unforced errors to Dimitrov's 25, and after the Italian forced a fifth the Bulgarian broke early and served it out.
Grigor DimitrovRows the source hadn’t published are left off rather than guessed.
At this Stage
Billed as the tie of the round, and it delivered five sets on Centre Court. Dimitrov — a 2014 semi-finalist back here on a wild card at No. 146 — beat the 2021 finalist Berrettini 6-3 6-4 3-6 5-7 6-3, weathering a middle-match surge that levelled the score before breaking early in the decider. The serve was supposed to separate them; instead it was Berrettini's second ball, punished all afternoon (35% won), and his 43 unforced errors to Dimitrov's 25. The fairytale reaches the last 16, where it collides with another from this same round: Arthur Fery, the British wild card who stunned Zizou Bergs in five. Two unlikely stories, one quarter-final berth.
Grigor Dimitrov✓Matteo BerrettiniRound of 64
Round of 32
What we know now
What I said beforehand
The preview, frozen before the first serve. Clearly dated, never rewritten — that's the deal that makes the pick worth anything.
Berrettini, but only just. This is the tie of the round for the connoisseur: a 2021 Wimbledon finalist against a 2014 semi-finalist, two of the finest grass movers of their generation, each arriving on a resurgent run. Dimitrov, back on a wild card at No. 146, has been the story, upsetting 15th seed Jakub Menšík; Berrettini survived a four-tiebreak epic with Wawrinka and then dismissed the 20th seed Arthur Fils. Their head-to-head is level at 1-1. The separator is the serve: Berrettini's is the single biggest grass weapon left in this quarter, and on a fast court it manufactures the cheap holds and short points that keep the pressure entirely on the other man. Dimitrov's variety can absolutely win it — expect a decider either way — but the Italian's first strike is the tie-breaker.
The case for Grigor Dimitrov
45% to winDimitrov is playing like the man who reached the Wimbledon semi-finals a decade ago: he outmanoeuvred a big-serving 15th seed in Menšík by returning brilliantly and staying ice-calm on the key points. His one-handed backhand and disguise are tailor-made for grass, and a wild card ranking flatters a player who, healthy, belongs far higher. If he reads the Berrettini serve the way he read Menšík's, he wins.
The case for Matteo Berrettini
55% to winBerrettini is the 2021 Wimbledon finalist and, on grass, arguably the bigger threat of the two: a serve that produces free holds by the set and a forehand that ends points before rallies begin. He came through the Wawrinka war on four tiebreaks — proof his nerve holds — then dispatched a seed. He is the higher-ranked man at No. 51 and the more recent deep runner here. On a quick Centre-Court-caliber surface, the serve wins the tightest sets.
Both cases written 2026-07-03, before the first ball — frozen into the record exactly as written, whatever the result. The percentages are mine — opinions with a percent sign on. They add to 100 because tennis has no draw to hide the rounding in.
My locked pick: Matteo Berrettini to advance ✗ WRONG
“Two grass throwbacks, split 1-1 — the bigger serve and the more recent deep run give Berrettini the edge.”
Locked 2026-07-03 13:30 UTC — rendered verbatim from the pick ledger; never a fresher, hedged version
Tale of the tape
Grigor DimitrovMatteo BerrettiniPlayer vitals: ATP Tour player profiles and Wikipedia (career records) · as of 2026-07-09.
Storylines
- A grass throwback: the 2021 finalist Berrettini against the 2014 semi-finalist Dimitrov.
- Dimitrov, back on a wild card, has already upset the 15th seed to reach this stage.
- The head-to-head is level at 1-1, and both men own huge grass-court serves.
Head to head
Level at 1-1; Berrettini won the most recent meeting 7-6(5) 7-6(1) indoors at Vienna in 2019.
Source: ATP head-to-head · as of 2026-07-03.
Court & schedule: Centre Court (TennisTemple match stats and ESPN scoreboard, as of 2026-07-04)
Venue: All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, London — grass.