The Greek tennis star Contemplated Retirement During Pain-Filled Campaign

Stefanos Tsitsipas has revealed he thought about ending his career because of debilitating back issues throughout 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.

Currently placed 36th in the world following minimal competition since his early exit at the US Open this past summer, Tsitsipas indicated continuous medical care has begun yielding positive results.

"My greatest anticipation lies in seeing how my body responds during actual training concerning my injury," commented Tsitsipas.

"The biggest fear centered on if I was able to finish a match," the athlete continued, noting the injury plagued him "over the last six to eight months."

"I kept asking, 'Can I compete another contest without discomfort?'"

"I became truly frightened after the defeat at the US Open [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I could not to move for two days. That is the moment begin to question 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 with the Greek team at the team event, drawn against Naomi Osaka's Japan and the British team captained by Raducanu. The competition takes place across Australian cities in early January, just before the season's first major.

"The greatest victory for 2026 would be to stop worrying about finishing matches," he expressed.

"It is incredibly encouraging realizing you had an off-season without pain – I hope it continues. I want to deliver in 2026 and at the team championship.

"The effort is invested. The crucial element is total belief in my ability to get back to where I was. I will attempt everything to make it happen."