Grigor Dimitrov praised the work ethic of superstar girlfriend Maria Sharapova on Wednesday but stopped short of shining a light on his relationship with sport's richest woman.
Dimitrov and Sharapova, who have been dating for 18 months, are Wimbledon's most high-profile power couple.
But the Bulgarian 11th seed, often touted as a Grand Slam champion in the making, is far happier talking about the influence of veteran Australian coach Roger Rasheed than the impact of Sharapova.
"Well, we're competing in the same sport, but not in the same category," said the 23-year-old Dimitrov.
"All I can say is that I think Maria's one of the best workers that can be out there, one of the best students of the game. She's just the best at what she does.
"I'm just different towards my preparation and how I like things to be done. I mean, I'm also a workaholic.
"I think you can learn a lot in a way. But I think in the end it's not about what I'm going to learn from her. It's about what I want to learn from myself and for the game. I'm trying to find all the ways possible on my own. Of course, it's great to have support like hers."
But do the lovebirds find a perfect balance between work and play while they are chasing Wimbledon titles?
"I think that's more of a private thing, so I don't feel comfortable commentating on that," said Dimitrov, who made the third round for the first time on Wednesday with a 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 Centre Court win over Australian teenager Luke Saville.
Dimitrov is happier to focus on his relationship with Rasheed who worked with Lleyton Hewitt, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Gael Monfils before teaming up with the Bulgarian in 2013.
"We've put in a tremendous amount of work throughout all the months. Especially in the off-season, when we really needed to step on the gas and create a solid base for the year ahead, I think we found a good combination on and off the court.
"We do a lot of work. A lot of weights. He's a very tough but fair man and I love to work. I mean, I love to give everything from myself every day. You know, on occasions when I can go 110% every day, it's a good base to have."
Next up for Dimitrov is Ukraine 21st seed Aklexander Dolgopolov who fired a huge 42 aces and 84 winners to beat Germany's Benjamin Becker 6-7 (4/7), 7-6 (7/0), 6-3, 6-4 on Wednesday in his second round clash.
Despite being an impressive statistic, it was still a long way off the Wimbledon aces record of 113 set by John Isner in his famous marathon win over Nicolas Mahut in 2010.
Source: AFP
