Birthday curse strikes Dimitrov, Konta in Rome

By Cody Fitzpatrick May 19, 2018
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Birthday curse strikes Dimitrov, Konta in Rome

ByCody Fitzpatrick

Published May 19, 2018

Apparently it's very bad luck to play a match on your birthday, at least this week in Rome.

Grigor Dimitrov and Johanna Konta each played on their 27th birthday, Wednesday and Thursday respectively, and they each lost in three sets.

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Dimitrov fell 6-7 (4), 7-5, 6-4 to Kei Nishikori, who scrambled around the court to make every point count.

The next day, Konta took her first set 6-2. But then Jelena Ostapenko, in a performance reminiscent of her French Open final, took control to win the next two.

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In other birthday news, Kristina Mladenovic turned 25 on Monday before having to retire against Anastasija Sevastova on Tuesday.

And Andy Murray, missing Rome while still recovering from his hip injury, celebrated his 31st birthday on Tuesday. He looked the least happy of them all.

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Both defending Roland Garros champions—Ostapenko and Rafael Nadal—may want to watch out, as their June 8 and June 3 birthdays both fall during the French Open.