Stefanos Tsitsipas Seriously Considered Retirement During Injury-Plagued Campaign
The athlete entered the previous US Open as the 26th seed.
The tennis professional disclosed he pondered ending his career due to 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 to Novak Djokovic at both the 2021 French Open and the 2023 Australian Open.
Now ranked 36th in the world after a limited schedule since his early exit at the US Open this past summer, he stated continuous medical care is finally showing encouraging progress.
"I'm most excited is to observe how my body holds up under regular practice with regard to my back," commented Tsitsipas.
"My primary worry centered on if I could complete an encounter," he added, explaining the pain had troubled him "for the past half a year or more."
"I kept asking, 'Can I compete in another match without discomfort?'"
"It was genuinely scary following the loss in Flushing Meadows [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I could not to walk for 48 hours. That's when you begin to question the path ahead."
Tsitsipas further mentioned satisfaction regarding his current recovery plan following the completion of five weeks of off-season preparation completely pain-free.
He is scheduled to compete for Greece 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 in Perth and Sydney in early January, the week preceding the Australian Open.
"The greatest victory for 2026 would be to stop worrying over completing bouts," he expressed.
"It provides fantastic feedback to know you completed a pre-season without pain – I wish for it to last. I want to deliver in 2026 and at the team championship.
"I have done the work. The most important thing is total belief that I can return to my previous level. I will try all means to achieve that."
