Stefanos Tsitsipas Contemplated Retirement Amid Pain-Filled 2025 Season

Stefanos Tsitsipas has revealed he thought about ending his career because of severe 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 in New York this past summer, he stated continuous medical care has begun yielding encouraging progress.

"My greatest anticipation lies in seeing how my body holds up under actual training with regard to my injury," commented Tsitsipas.

"My primary worry was whether I was able to finish an encounter," the athlete continued, explaining the pain had troubled him "for the past half a year or more."

"I would wonder, 'Am I able to play in another match without discomfort?'"

"It was genuinely scary after the defeat in Flushing Meadows [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I was unable to walk for 48 hours. That's when you begin to question your career's future."

Tsitsipas further mentioned being content with the present treatment regimen following the completion of an extended period of pre-season training without any pain.

He is scheduled to compete with the Greek team at the team event, where they face Team Japan led by Osaka and the British team led by Emma Raducanu. The tournament will be held in Perth and Sydney in early January, just before the season's first major.

"The greatest victory for 2026 is to not have concerns about finishing matches," he expressed.

"It provides fantastic feedback realizing you had an off-season in good health – I wish for it to last. I want to deliver in 2026 and at the United Cup.

"The effort is invested. The crucial element is total belief that I can return to my previous level. I will try all means to achieve that."