The back problems that Stefanos Tsitsipas dealt with during the second half of the 2025 season were so severe that the Greek tennis star was questioning the future of his playing career.
The former world number 3 and current world number 36 withdrew from his opening match at Wimbledon against French qualifier Valentin Royer after receiving medical treatment for his back. He continued to suffer severe pain, notably after a second round defeat to Germany’s Daniel Altmaier at the US Open in late August before withdrawing from the Davis Cup in September.
“I was really scared after my loss at the US Open with my back, because I just couldn’t walk for two days,” Tsitsipas told reporters Thursday at the Greek team’s press conference ahead of the 2026 season-opening United Cup. “When things like that happen, you start to reconsider the future of your career. I just hope 2026 doesn’t bring any of this.”
Tsitsipas, 27, went 22-18 (including two retirements) in 2025 despite back issues that have haunted him over what he said were the last six to eight months.
“When you see yourself in poor health and in such a dark and bad state constantly, not just a week or two, a lot of things go through your mind and your future appears in front of you in terms of how you see yourself in a few months,” Tsitsipas said.
“I’d rather just end it if it ends up going that way, than constantly suffer. I just want to be happy with the way I live my life, and if I’m not able to compete, then one day I guess I’ll have to end it. But I don’t want that to happen. I want to continue for at least 10 more years.”
A 12-time tour champion, Tsitsipas said he was encouraged by the ongoing medical treatment that helped him arrive in Perth, Australia, for the United Cup after completing five weeks of off-season training without pain.
“What I’m most excited about is trying to see my actual training that I’ve been doing over the last few weeks and how it’s reacting to my back as well, because my biggest concern has been: can I actually finish a match? Tsitsipas told reporters.
“I did all the necessary actions and took all the necessary steps to rehabilitate myself and get back to what I remember. So now, so far, I think it’s giving great feedback, knowing that I did my whole pre-season without any pain, without any discomfort.”
Tsitsipas, runner-up to Novak Djokovic at the 2021 French Open and the 2023 Australian Open, will face Japan’s Shintaro Mochizuki as his first test for 2026 on Thursday. He co-leads the Greece team with Maria Sakkari, who opens the tournament against Naomi Osaka.
“I want to keep my promises for 2026 and the United Cup,” Tsitsipas said. “I worked hard. The most important thing is to fully believe that I can get back to where I was. I will try everything to achieve that.”
–Field level media
