Stan Wawrinka handed Grigor Dimitrov an agonising defeat at the Western & Southern Open as he won a first-round battle to eliminate 2017 Cincinnati champion Grigor Dimitrov 5-7, 6-4, 7-6 (7/4).
Wawrinka prevailed against Dimitrov in a topsy-turvy clash at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Cincinnati, where he lost the opening set and squandered a 5-1 lead in the third as Dimitrov threatened a stunning comeback.
Dimitrov saved two match points in the process to level it at 5-5 before Wawrinka broke again but the three-time grand slam champion was unable to serve it out.
Wawrinka, though, raced out to a 4-0 lead in the tie-break and eventually closed out his fifth consecutive win against Dimitrov.
Next up for Wawrinka is qualifier Andrey Rublev, who upstaged 15th seed Nikoloz Basilashvili 6-7 (4-7) 6-4 6-2.
