After taking part in a turbulent year on the professional tour, where his results were as mixed as the expectations placed on his shoulders, Grigor Dimitrov will look to make the most of his potential in 2015. The Bulgarian star will begin his season in Brisbane, where he will face France’s Jeremy Chardy in the second round of the tournament. Having met twice previously on the tour, the pair split those matches and are left with a 1-1 head-to-head record going into their third ever professional meeting.

Currently ranked at world No. 11, Dimitrov is on the cusp of becoming a mainstay member of the upper echelon on the ATP World Tour. He complied a 50-18 record on the tour last season, including three titles and nearly $3million in prize money. He reached the semi-final of two Masters events (Rome, Canada) as well as the final four at the 2014 Wimbledon Championships. After a poor showing at the Paris Bercy, he failed to qualify for a spot in the ATP World Tour Finals and rejected the offer to become an alternate in the draw.

France’s Jeremy Chardy began his season in Brsibane with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Andrey Golubev of Kazahkstan. He needed just one break in each set to secure the victory and reach the second round of the tournament, where he will contest a battle against the No. 4 seed.

This marks the third time that Dimitrov and Chardy will meet on the tour, with the series tied at 1-1. Both their previous encounters took place at Grand Slam events, with Chardy winning on home soil at the 2013 French Open, while Dimtrov rebounded with a win at the Australian Open the following year. Given that the Bulgarian is better on hard courts, he should find his way into the quarter-final round of the tournament.

Prediction: Grigor Dimitrov in Three Sets