Grigor Dimitrov's exact injury diagnosis emerges as Wimbledon hero gets silver lining

Grigor Dimitrov could be back in time for the US Open despite retiring from his Wimbledon showdown with Jannik Sinner. The Bulgarian, who has been desperately unlucky with injury issues over the past 12 months, was forced to give up on the match while two sets up against the world No.1 on Monday night.

Dimitrov was powering towards what would have been a huge shock against a player who had been untouchable up to that point in the Championships. But, during the third set, he slumped to the turf clutching his chest after bombing an ace down-court. The 34-year-old received medical attention but he was declared unfit to continue and he conceded defeat in tears.

Sinner concluded a sombre end to the evening by telling the crowd: "I don't take this as a win at all." And Dimitrov was withdrawn from his post-match media duties as he sought further medical advice regarding his injury.

Now, TennisKafe claim to have been informed by Dimitrov's manager, Georgi Stoimenov, that the three-time Grand Slam semi-finalist suffered a partial tear of his pectoralis major muscle.

The same report estimates that Dimitrov will be forced to sit out his next three tournaments, including the National Bank Open and the Cincinnati Masters. But there is a silver lining for the veteran in that he is projected to be back in time for the season's next Grand Slam at Flushing Meadows in late August and early September.

If the timeline proves to be accurate, Dimitrov will get the opportunity to end a torrid run of injury setbacks at major tournaments. He has now been forced to retire from matches in his last five consecutive Grand Slam appearances.

Dimitrov's coach, Jamie Delgado, appeared on the BBC on Tuesday morning to discuss the shock of the night before. He said: "Completely gutted, disappointed, heartbroken. The work he's put in to get to this stage and play matches like that against someone like Sinner-it's really hard to take.

"It's getting harder to pick yourself up after these lows. This is the tournament he looks forward to the most. He loves the surface, the setting, the history-he even feels half-British."

Despite being two sets down and seemingly bound for defeat, Sinner is set to contest a Wimbledon semi-final against Ben Shelton. But the Italian is battling an injury problem of his own after falling early in Monday's match, and he had an MRI scan on Tuesday to get a better understanding of the damage to his elbow.