Tennis fans have been left shocked after discovering that Grigor Dimitrov’s girlfriend is a Hollywood actress – with many more followers than him.
Dimitrov had the sympathy of Centre Court on Monday when he walked off crying after being forced to retire against Jannik Sinner – despite being two sets up.
The Bulgarian was on the brink of a massive upset against the No 1 seed, leading 6-3, 7-5, and drawing 2-2 in the third set, but a shock pectoral injury forced his withdrawal.
In the wake of his devastation, his girlfriend sent him a heartfelt public message on social media re vealing her pride in him.
And fans were shocked to learn that his flame is none other than Eiza Gonzalez, an actress with eight million Instagram followers.
Gonzalez, who is also a singer, has starred in the likes of Fountain of Youth, Ambulance, Godzilla vs Kong and Mr & Mrs Smith in her acting career.
The couple went public with their relationship in May, and Gonzalez has described the tennis star as ‘the man of my dreams’.
Taking to Instagram, Gonzalez, 34, who used to date actor Timothee Chalamet, sent a doting message to Dimitrov, who is the same age.
‘Love of my life. I couldn’t be more proud of you. You are BEYOND outstanding. This is just a moment that will pass and will make you even stronger,’ she wrote on her story.
‘But watching you today alongside the world was a reminder of who YOU are. You’re a winner. We all saw it. And you’ll do it again. I love you @grigordimitrov.’
Dimitrov has been forced to retire mid-match for five Grand Slams in a row.
‘Baby Fed,’ who used to be compared to Roger Federer in his youth, has had a successful career, reaching as high as third in the world in November 2017.
He has reached the semi-finals of every Grand Slam besides the French Open, where he has gone as far as the quarter-finals.
His run of 58 Grand Slam appearances in a row is a stretch which no active player can match – not even Novak Djokovic.
All of this has brought him global fame – brand deals with Lacoste and Adidas, an Instagram following of 1.2 million fans, and high-profile relationships with stars such as Maria Sharapova and Nicole Scherzinger.
Gonzalez is another big-name partner with lots of commitments but she tries to follow Dimitrov where she can.
The Mexican actress supported her beau during his Mutua Madrid Open tournament, attending his match on April 26.
In May they were spotted walking hand-in-hand in Madrid and Dimitrov all but went Instagram official with her, sharing a photo of her from a David Yurman event in Miami, along with the caption, ‘Are you kidding me,’ plus fire and black heart emojis.
