The Greek tennis star Seriously Considered Walking Away Amid Injury-Plagued Campaign
The athlete entered the previous US Open as the 26th seed.
Stefanos Tsitsipas has revealed he pondered quitting the sport because of debilitating spinal pain throughout the 2025 tennis year.
At 27 years old, the player once ranked as high as third globally, was a finalist to Novak Djokovic in the finals of the 2021 French Open and the 2023 Australian Open.
Now ranked 36th in the world following minimal competition since his second-round departure at the US Open in August, Tsitsipas indicated continuous medical care is finally showing encouraging progress.
"My greatest anticipation is to observe how my body responds during actual training concerning my injury," commented Tsitsipas.
"My primary worry was whether I was able to finish an encounter," the athlete continued, explaining the pain plagued him "over the last half a year or more."
"I would wonder, 'Am I able to play another contest pain-free?'"
"I became truly frightened following the loss at the US Open [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I was unable to walk for two days. That is the moment begin to question your career's future."
He also reported being content with the present treatment regimen after finishing an extended period of pre-season training completely pain-free.
He is scheduled to compete with the Greek team in the United Cup, where they face Team Japan led by Osaka and the Great Britain squad captained by Raducanu. The tournament takes place across Australian cities in early January, the week preceding the Australian Open.
"My main goal for 2026 would be to not have concerns about finishing matches," he stated.
"It is incredibly encouraging realizing you had an off-season without pain – I hope it continues. I want to deliver during the upcoming season and for the United Cup.
"The effort is invested. The most important thing is complete faith that I can return to my previous level. I will try all means to make it happen."
