The Greek tennis star Contemplated Walking Away During Pain-Filled Campaign
Stefanos Tsitsipas was the 26th seed at last year's US Open
Stefanos Tsitsipas has revealed he thought about quitting the sport because of severe back issues throughout the season.
The 27-year-old, who has reached a career-high ranking of world number three, finished as runner-up to Novak Djokovic in the finals of the 2021 French Open alongside the 2023 Australian Open.
Now ranked as the world's 36th best player after a limited schedule post a second-round departure in New York this past summer, Tsitsipas indicated that ongoing treatment is finally showing encouraging progress.
"I'm most excited lies in seeing how my body holds up under actual training concerning my injury," commented Tsitsipas.
"My primary worry centered on if I could complete a match," the athlete continued, explaining the pain had troubled him "over the last six to eight months."
"I kept asking, 'Am I able to play another contest pain-free?'"
"It was genuinely scary following the loss in Flushing Meadows [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I was unable to walk for 48 hours. That's when you begin to question the path ahead."
He also reported being content with the present treatment regimen after finishing five weeks of off-season preparation completely pain-free.
He is scheduled to compete for Greece at the team event, where they face Naomi Osaka's Japan and the Great Britain squad led by Emma Raducanu. The competition will be held in Perth and Sydney from 2 to 11 January, the week preceding the season's first major.
"The greatest victory next season is to stop worrying over completing bouts," he stated.
"It is incredibly encouraging to know you completed a pre-season without pain – I hope it continues. I want to deliver during the upcoming season and for the team championship.
"The effort is invested. The crucial element is total belief that I can return to where I was. I will try all means to make it happen."
