2017 ended with Grigor Dimitrov's mark. The Bulgarian player won his biggest career title at the ATP Finals in London in November, and after training hard in Monte Carlo he is about to start the 2018 season in Brisbane, where he won the first of his four titles in the 2017 season.

Interviewed by Italian newspaper La Repubblica, the 26-year-old spoke about his mental improvements. 'Tennis is a particular world that changes people. I always repeat that tennis can't be everything for me, in life other things matter as well.

I don't want to be good at just one thing in life, I would like to do other [things]. Maybe teach. In order to send a message to younger players and to who will come after [me]. If you don't contribute something, what did you live for? That's how I like to define myself, as a guy who has a lot of passion.

I like to paint and take pictures.' Did his personal life affect how he was perceived by the world? 'I think I was misunderstood. Not knowing me, people had a wrong idea. Of course there were tough moments, where I wasn't surrounded by right people.

Let's forget about the cliché on girlfriends, from Serena [Williams] to Maria [Sharapova], it's useless to get around it. I say that it's easy to be losen in beauty, but is it a mistake? But today with Nicole (Scherzinger), my current girlfriend, I am careful about my privacy.' Explaining why he was called "Baby Fed", Dimitrov said: 'Maybe it's my father's fault who taught me the one-handed backhand,' he joked.

'Federer and Nadal are two phenomena who marked my sports life: the funny thing is that I, who was called "Baby Fed" was "saved" by Rafa and his academy. It's one of life's paradoxes.' Who will dominate 2018? 'Good question, but if these amazing players will keep playing, the truth will be about just one thing: in tennis, age doesn't matter anymore.' ALSO READ: Dimitrov: 'If there's one person that can return, that's Andy Murray'