The Greek tennis star Contemplated Retirement During Injury-Plagued Campaign
The athlete entered the previous US Open as the 26th seed.
Stefanos Tsitsipas has revealed he pondered quitting the sport because of debilitating back issues throughout the 2025 tennis year.
At 27 years old, the player once ranked as high as third globally, finished as runner-up to Novak Djokovic in the finals of the 2021 French Open alongside the 2023 Australian Open.
Currently placed 36th in the world after a limited schedule since his second-round departure in New York in August, he stated continuous medical care is finally showing positive results.
"My greatest anticipation is to observe how my training responds during actual training with regard to my back," commented Tsitsipas.
"My primary worry was whether I could complete an encounter," the athlete continued, explaining the pain plagued him "for the past half a year or more."
"I kept asking, 'Can I compete in another match without discomfort?'"
"I became truly frightened after the defeat at the US Open [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I was unable to walk for two days. That is the moment begin to question the path ahead."
He also reported being content with his current recovery plan after finishing five weeks of pre-season training completely pain-free.
His next appearance for Greece at the team event, where they face Naomi Osaka's Japan and the Great Britain squad captained by Raducanu. The tournament will be held in Perth and Sydney in early January, the week preceding the season's first major.
"My main goal for 2026 is to stop worrying about finishing matches," he stated.
"It provides fantastic feedback realizing you had an off-season in good health – I hope it continues. I aim to perform in 2026 and at the team championship.
"The effort is invested. The crucial element is complete faith that I can return to where I was. I will attempt everything to achieve that."