The Greek tennis star Seriously Considered 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 due to severe back issues during the season.
At 27 years old, the player once ranked as high as third globally, finished as runner-up against Novak Djokovic at both the 2021 French Open alongside the 2023 Australian Open.
Currently placed as the world's 36th best player after a limited schedule post a second-round departure in New York in August, he stated that ongoing treatment has begun yielding encouraging progress.
"My greatest anticipation lies in seeing how my training responds during actual training with regard to my back," commented Tsitsipas.
"The biggest fear was whether I could complete a match," the athlete continued, explaining the pain had troubled him "over the last half a year or more."
"I kept asking, 'Am I able to play in another match without discomfort?'"
"I became truly frightened following the loss in Flushing Meadows [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I could not to walk for 48 hours. That is the moment start reconsidering your career's future."
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 for Greece in the United Cup, drawn against Naomi Osaka's Japan and the Great Britain squad led by Emma Raducanu. The tournament will be held in Perth and Sydney in early January, just before the Australian Open.
"The greatest victory for 2026 is to stop worrying over completing bouts," he stated.
"It provides fantastic feedback realizing you had an off-season without pain – I wish for it to last. I want to deliver during the upcoming season and for the team championship.
"I have done the work. The crucial element is complete faith in my ability to get back to where I was. I will attempt everything to achieve that."
