Stefanos Tsitsipas Seriously Considered Walking Away During Injury-Plagued 2025 Season
Stefanos Tsitsipas was the 26th seed at last year's US Open
The tennis professional disclosed he pondered ending his career because of debilitating spinal pain during the 2025 tennis year.
At 27 years old, the player once ranked as high as third globally, finished as runner-up against Novak Djokovic at both the 2021 French Open and the 2023 Australian Open.
Currently placed as the world's 36th best player after a limited schedule post a second-round departure in New York in August, he stated continuous medical care is finally showing encouraging progress.
"I'm most excited is to observe how my body holds up under actual training with regard to my back," commented Tsitsipas.
"My primary worry was whether I was able to finish a match," he added, explaining the pain plagued him "over the last half a year or more."
"I would wonder, 'Can I compete in another match pain-free?'"
"It was genuinely scary following the loss at the US Open [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I could not to walk for 48 hours. That is the moment start reconsidering the path ahead."
Tsitsipas further mentioned being content with his current recovery plan after finishing five weeks of off-season preparation 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 led by Emma Raducanu. The tournament takes place across Australian cities from 2 to 11 January, the week preceding the Australian Open.
"The greatest victory next season is to not have concerns over completing bouts," he stated.
"It provides fantastic feedback to know you completed a pre-season in good health – I hope it continues. I aim to perform in 2026 and at the United Cup.
"I have done the work. The crucial element is complete faith in my ability to get back to where I was. I will try all means to achieve that."
