Grigor Dimitrov Aims to Break In the Top 5 of World Tennis Rankings

Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria celebrates his win against Jeremy Chardy of France during their men's singles second round match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane, January 7, 2015. REUTERS/Jason Reed REUTERS/Jason Reed

Grigor Dimitrov, the most successful Bulgarian tennis athlete, first broke into the top 10 of the ATP world rankings in July 2014. He achieved his career-high singles rank as World No. 8 a month later. As he continues his quest for a title at Brisbane International, Dimitrov has shared his thoughts on how he can break into the top 5 in men's game.

Speaking in front of the media following his victory over Jeremy Chardy, 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (8), in the second round of Brisbane International, Dimitrov said that he isn't prioritising any specific goal. He wants to be able to improve progressively and move from one point to the next.

"There is always a possibility for everything, I would say, I think the first step is definitely Top 5," Dimitrov said. "From there, you can sort of see the end, and that's that top."

Playing sports may be simple, but a lot of factors need to be taken into consideration to be able to achieve success in it. For the 23-year-old Haskovo native, the formula to achieving his top 5 ambition is to get good results in Grand Slam and major tournaments. He knows that he should play his best tennis and strive to give his best effort in the game.

In other news, Dimitrov has recently taken a break of his practice session to meet with the Brisbane Lions. He swapped his tennis racquet to play Australian Rules football during some downtime in Brisbane on Jan. 8. Dimitrov met with Dayne Zorko and Sam Mayes from the Brisbane Lions, who had him try punting the ball. Dimitrov, on the other hand, also returned the favour by teaching the Lions the basics of hitting the tennis balls.

Dimitrov's coach Roger Rasheed is a former Aussie Rules footballer. During his meeting with the Brisbane Lions, he joked and said that he and Rasheed can now perhaps enjoy a footy match some time.

Dimitrov is set to face Slovak Martin Klizan next for the quarterfinals match. It will be the pair's first ever meeting on court. The 34^th-ranked Klizan is coming off from a thrilling victory, 7-6 (8-6) 7-6 (9-7), over Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov.