Stefanos Tsitsipas Seriously Considered Walking Away During Pain-Filled 2025 Season
The athlete entered the previous US Open as the 26th seed.
The tennis professional disclosed he pondered quitting the sport because of debilitating spinal pain throughout the season.
The 27-year-old, who has reached a career-high ranking of world number three, finished as runner-up against 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 early exit in New York in August, Tsitsipas indicated that ongoing treatment is finally showing encouraging progress.
"I'm most excited is to observe how my training responds during actual training concerning my injury," commented Tsitsipas.
"The biggest fear centered on if I could complete an encounter," he added, noting the injury plagued him "for the past six to eight months."
"I would wonder, 'Can I compete in another match pain-free?'"
"I became truly frightened after the defeat in Flushing Meadows [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I could not to move for 48 hours. That is the moment start reconsidering the path ahead."
He also reported being content with his current recovery plan after finishing five weeks of off-season preparation without any pain.
He is scheduled to compete with the Greek team at the team event, drawn against Team Japan led by Osaka and the Great Britain squad captained by Raducanu. The tournament takes place in Perth and Sydney in early January, just before the season's first major.
"The greatest victory next season is to not have concerns over completing bouts," he expressed.
"It provides fantastic feedback realizing you had an off-season without pain – I hope it continues. I aim to perform during the upcoming season and for the team championship.
"The effort is invested. The crucial element is complete faith that I can return to where I was. I will try all means to achieve that."
