Stefanos Tsitsipas Contemplated Retirement During Injury-Plagued 2025 Season
The athlete entered the previous US Open as the 26th seed.
The tennis professional disclosed he thought about ending his career due to debilitating back issues during the season.
The 27-year-old, who has reached a career-high ranking of world number three, was a finalist against Novak Djokovic in the finals of the 2021 French Open and the 2023 Australian Open.
Now ranked 36th in the world after a limited schedule since his early exit in New York this past summer, Tsitsipas indicated that ongoing treatment is finally showing encouraging progress.
"My greatest anticipation lies in seeing how my training responds during actual training concerning my injury," commented Tsitsipas.
"My primary worry was whether I was able to finish a match," the athlete continued, noting the injury plagued him "over the last six to eight months."
"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's when you start reconsidering the path ahead."
He also reported satisfaction regarding the present treatment regimen following the completion of an extended period of off-season preparation without any pain.
He is scheduled to compete for Greece at the team event, where they face Team Japan led by Osaka and the British team led by Emma Raducanu. The tournament takes place across Australian cities from 2 to 11 January, just before the Australian Open.
"The greatest victory for 2026 is to not have concerns over completing bouts," he stated.
"It provides fantastic feedback to know you had a pre-season without pain – I wish for it to last. I aim to perform during the upcoming season and for the United Cup.
"The effort is invested. The most important thing is total belief in my ability to get back to where I was. I will attempt everything to achieve that."
