Stefanos Tsitsipas Seriously Considered Walking Away Amid Injury-Plagued 2025 Season
Stefanos Tsitsipas was the 26th seed at last year's US Open
The tennis professional disclosed he thought about ending his career because of severe spinal pain throughout the 2025 tennis year.
At 27 years old, the player once ranked as high as third globally, finished as runner-up against Novak Djokovic in the finals of the 2021 French Open and the 2023 Australian Open.
Currently placed as the world's 36th best player after a limited schedule since his second-round departure at the US Open this past summer, Tsitsipas indicated that ongoing treatment is finally showing positive results.
"I'm most excited is to observe how my training responds during regular practice concerning my injury," said Tsitsipas.
"The biggest fear centered on if I was able to finish a match," he added, explaining the pain plagued him "for the past half a year or more."
"I kept asking, 'Can I compete another contest without discomfort?'"
"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 begin to question your career's future."
He also reported being content with his current recovery plan after finishing five weeks of off-season preparation completely pain-free.
His next appearance with the Greek team in the United Cup, where they face Team Japan led by Osaka and the British team led by Emma Raducanu. The tournament will be held in Perth and Sydney in early January, just before the season's first major.
"My main goal next season is to not have concerns over completing bouts," he stated.
"It provides fantastic feedback realizing you had a pre-season without pain – I wish for it to last. I aim to perform in 2026 and at the United Cup.
"The effort is invested. The most important thing is complete faith in my ability to get back to where I was. I will try all means to make it happen."
