Stefanos Tsitsipas Contemplated Retirement During Pain-Filled 2025 Season
Stefanos Tsitsipas was the 26th seed at last year's US Open
Stefanos Tsitsipas has revealed he pondered quitting the sport due to severe back issues during the 2025 tennis year.
The 27-year-old, who has reached a career-high ranking of world number three, was a finalist to Novak Djokovic at both the 2021 French Open alongside the 2023 Australian Open.
Currently placed as the world's 36th best player following minimal competition post a second-round departure at the US Open this past summer, he stated continuous medical care has begun yielding positive results.
"My greatest anticipation is to observe how my training holds up under actual training concerning my injury," said Tsitsipas.
"The biggest fear centered on if I was able to finish a match," the athlete continued, noting the injury plagued him "for the past six to eight months."
"I kept asking, 'Am I able to play in another match without discomfort?'"
"It was genuinely scary after the defeat in Flushing Meadows [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I could not to walk for two days. That is the moment begin to question the path ahead."
Tsitsipas further mentioned being content with the present treatment regimen following the completion of an extended period of pre-season training completely pain-free.
He is scheduled to compete for Greece in the United Cup, drawn against Naomi Osaka's Japan and the British team led by Emma Raducanu. The competition will be held in Perth and Sydney from 2 to 11 January, just before the season's first major.
"My main goal for 2026 would be to not have concerns over completing bouts," he expressed.
"It provides fantastic feedback realizing you completed a pre-season in good health – I hope it continues. I aim to perform in 2026 and at the team championship.
"The effort is invested. The crucial element is complete faith in my ability to get back to where I was. I will attempt everything to achieve that."
