India, July 8 -- Grigor Dimitrov hadn't reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals in a decade. The only time he had breached that mark was in 2014, when he made the semifinals before losing to Novak Djokovic. But on Monday, the Bulgarian stood on the brink of a stunning upset on Centre Court - just a set away from toppling world No. 1 Jannik Sinner - until a cruel twist of fate left him inconsolable.

Sinner, who had reached the French Open final just last month, hadn't dropped a single set at Wimbledon until the round of 16 clash with Dimitrov. But the 19th seed turned the tide, winning the opening two sets 6-3, 7-5, as the Italian struggled with his own injury concerns.

In the third set, with the score locked at 2-2, Dimitrov suddenly showed...