Dimitrov snatches his ticket to the quarters!
Grigor Dimitrov gave himself a scare, but he'll be there in the next round.
Arriving at Flushing Meadows in a state of measured confidence and in search of his best level, the Bulgarian went through all manner of emotions to finally dispose of Rublev in 5 sets and almost 4 hours (6-3, 7-6, 1-6, 3-6, 6-3).
Of course, it was no great Dimitrov. On a fairly average day, the world no. 9 looked set for a hard-fought victory.
Faced with a very tense Russian, he quite logically broke away before suffering a real physical setback.
Refusing to give up, Dimitrov bided his time, unsettling his opponent with incessant variations of pace, before finally raising his arms in victory.
Buoyed by his mental strength rather than his tennis, the 33-year-old has secured another Major quarter-final appearance, where he will face either Tiafoe or Popyrin.