Stefanos Tsitsipas Contemplated Walking Away During Pain-Filled Campaign
The athlete entered the previous US Open as the 26th seed.
The tennis professional disclosed he thought about ending his career because of severe spinal pain during the 2025 tennis year.
The 27-year-old, who has reached a career-high ranking of world number three, was a finalist to Novak Djokovic in the finals of the 2021 French Open and the 2023 Australian Open.
Now ranked 36th in the world following minimal competition since his early exit in New York this past summer, he stated continuous medical care is finally showing positive results.
"My greatest anticipation is to observe how my body holds up under actual training concerning my back," commented Tsitsipas.
"My primary worry was whether I was able to finish an encounter," he added, noting the injury had troubled him "over the last half a year or more."
"I kept asking, 'Am I able to play another contest pain-free?'"
"I became truly frightened after the defeat in Flushing Meadows [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I was unable to move for two days. That is the moment start reconsidering the path ahead."
He also reported being content with the present treatment regimen following the completion of five weeks of pre-season training completely pain-free.
He is scheduled to compete with the Greek team at the team event, drawn against Team Japan led by Osaka and the British team captained by Raducanu. The competition will be held in Perth and Sydney from 2 to 11 January, just before the season's first major.
"My main goal for 2026 is to not have concerns over completing bouts," he stated.
"It provides fantastic feedback realizing you had a pre-season in good health – I wish for it to last. I want to deliver in 2026 and at the team championship.
"I have done the work. The most important thing is total belief that I can return to my previous level. I will try all means to make it happen."
