Stefanos Tsitsipas Contemplated Retirement Amid Injury-Plagued Campaign
Stefanos Tsitsipas was the 26th seed at last year's US Open
Stefanos Tsitsipas has revealed he thought about ending his career because of severe back issues throughout the 2025 tennis year.
The 27-year-old, who has reached a career-high ranking of world number three, finished as runner-up to Novak Djokovic at both the 2021 French Open and the 2023 Australian Open.
Now ranked 36th in the world following minimal competition since his second-round departure in New York in August, he stated that ongoing treatment has begun yielding encouraging progress.
"I'm most excited is to observe how my body responds during regular practice concerning my injury," said Tsitsipas.
"My primary worry centered on if I was able to finish a match," he added, noting the injury had troubled him "over the last half a year or more."
"I kept asking, 'Can I compete in another match pain-free?'"
"I became truly frightened after the defeat at the US Open [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I was unable to move for two days. That's when you begin to question the path ahead."
Tsitsipas further mentioned satisfaction regarding the present treatment regimen after finishing an extended period of off-season preparation without any pain.
His next appearance for Greece in the United Cup, drawn against Naomi Osaka's Japan and the Great Britain squad led by Emma Raducanu. The tournament will be held across Australian cities in early January, just before the Australian Open.
"My main goal next season is to stop worrying about finishing matches," he expressed.
"It provides fantastic feedback realizing you completed a pre-season without pain – I wish for it to last. I aim to perform during the upcoming season and for the team championship.
"I have done the work. The crucial element is total belief in my ability to get back to where I was. I will attempt everything to achieve that."
