Stefanos Tsitsipas had to go through the worst moment of his career, but he dreams of returning to the top as early as this year.
The former world No.3 looked set to compete for Grand Slam titles and the top position in the ATP rankings, but he has moved significantly away from these goals due to a number of factors.
Firstly, the Greek ace has lost confidence in his potential due to the overbearing rise of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner who have become the two new benchmarks within the men's tour.
The champion from Athens has struggled to evolve his game and has fallen behind, as well as having had a series of injuries that have negatively affected his performance. The reference is above all to that back problem that tormented him last season, having prevented him from playing as he would have liked and having forced him to end the year early to avoid worsening the situation.
Tsitsipas wants to fight back
The winner of the 2019 Nitto ATP Finals had time to rest and recharge his batteries, working hard during the off-season and also sorting out some personal matters. As everyone knows, 'Tsitsi' also had to metabolize the end of his love-story with Paula Badosa and needed a period of adjustment.
His 2026 has already begun with the United Cup, where he was the protagonist of an excellent debut together with his Greece.
Stefanos is feeling much better right now, but in a recent interview he did not rule out that he might think about retiring if his body shows signs of failure in the future.
"I was seriously injured for some time and that also affected my mental state" – admitted the former Top 5.
"There were really dark moments when I thought about giving up, because the pain was almost unbearable. My goal is to be happy. If I am not able to compete, I will have to stop, even if I dream of playing tennis at the highest level for another ten years" – he concluded.
