Tickets for the highly anticipated exhibition match between Novak Djokovic and Grigor Dimitrov, scheduled for September 17 at “Arena Sofia” in Bulgaria, were sold out in a record-breaking 8 minutes. According to Miroslav Emanuilov, the manager of the online ticketing platform responsible for the sales, this was the fastest sell-out they had ever experienced for a sports event.
With approximately 11,000 seats available in the “Arena Sofia,” around 80 percent of the tickets were released for general sale, while the remaining were reserved for sponsors. The event, organized by the “Grigor Dimitrov” Foundation, has sparked considerable excitement among tennis enthusiasts, underscoring the immense popularity of both players.
However, the rapid sell-out led to the emergence of a “black” market, with tickets being resold at double or triple their original price. Many fans reported being unable to secure tickets even when they attempted to purchase them at 8 a.m. on August 8, the moment they became available.
Emanuilov explained that the overwhelming demand, with between 15,000 and 16,000 people per minute visiting the ticketing website, created a surge in ticket requests far exceeding the usual demand. Despite implementing a limit of up to 8 tickets per person to prevent bulk buying, the exceptional interest in the Djokovic-Dimitrov match resulted in an unprecedentedly swift sell-out.
Novak Djokovic in 2024
At the moment ranked no.2, the Serbian played his last match on the 4th of August when he defeated world no.3 Carlos Alcaraz 7-6(3) 7-6(2) in the final in Paris to win his 99th career title.
During this season the Serbian owns an overall 29-7 match record. Novak has won 1 title in Paris. The Serbian reached the final in Wimbledon.
He is also scheduled to play in Shanghai (Shanghai Rolex Masters) on the 30th of September and Paris (Rolex Paris Masters) on the 28th of October.
Grigor Dimitrov in 2024
Ranked world no.9, the Bulgarian played his last match on the 10th of August when he was overcome by world no.23 Alexei Popyrin 4-6 7-6(5) 6-3 in the 3rd round in Montreal (draw).
This year Dimitrov has a compiled 33-12 match record. Dimitrov clinched 1 title in Brisbane. The Bulgarian reached the final in Marseille and Miami.
Grigor Dimitrov will face the world no.50 Fabian Marozsan in the 2nd round. The head to head is 1-0 for Dimitrov.
Grigor has won 1 title in 2024 in Brisbane. Grigor got to the final in Marseille (Open 13 Provence) and in Miami (Miami Open).
Grigor won 9 titles in his career: 4 on hard courts, 1 on clay courts, 3 on indoor courts and 1 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
Novak Djokovic and Grigor Dimitrov faced off 13 times. Their actual head to head record is 12-1 for Djokovic. The last time they played each other, Novak Djokovic won 6-4 6-3 in the final in Paris (Rolex Paris Masters) in November 2023.
Here are the highlights.
Novak Djokovic and Grigor Dimitrov |
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