The Greek tennis star Seriously Considered Walking Away During Pain-Filled Campaign
The athlete entered the previous US Open as the 26th seed.
Stefanos Tsitsipas has revealed he thought about ending his career because of debilitating back issues during the season.
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 after a limited schedule post a early exit in New York in August, he stated that ongoing treatment has begun yielding positive results.
"I'm most excited is to observe how my body holds up under actual training concerning my back," commented Tsitsipas.
"My primary worry was whether I could complete an encounter," the athlete continued, explaining the pain plagued him "over the last six to eight months."
"I would wonder, 'Can I compete another contest without discomfort?'"
"I became truly frightened following the loss at the US Open [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 satisfaction regarding his current recovery plan after finishing an extended period of pre-season training without any pain.
His next appearance for Greece at the team event, drawn against Naomi Osaka's Japan and the Great Britain squad captained by Raducanu. The competition takes place across Australian cities in early January, the week preceding the Australian Open.
"The greatest victory for 2026 would be to not have concerns over completing bouts," he stated.
"It provides fantastic feedback to know you completed 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 most important thing is complete faith in my ability to get back to my previous level. I will try all means to achieve that."
