Stefanos Tsitsipas Contemplated Walking Away Amid Injury-Plagued Campaign
The athlete entered the previous US Open as the 26th seed.
Stefanos Tsitsipas has revealed he thought about quitting the sport because of severe spinal pain throughout the season.
The 27-year-old, who has reached a career-high ranking of world number three, finished as runner-up against Novak Djokovic at both the 2021 French Open and the 2023 Australian Open.
Currently placed as the world's 36th best player after a limited schedule since his early exit at the US Open this past summer, Tsitsipas indicated that ongoing treatment has begun yielding positive results.
"I'm most excited lies in seeing how my body responds during actual training with regard to my back," said Tsitsipas.
"The biggest fear centered on if I could complete an encounter," the athlete continued, noting the injury plagued him "over the last half a year or more."
"I would wonder, '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 was unable to walk for two days. That is the moment begin to question your career's future."
Tsitsipas further mentioned satisfaction regarding the present treatment regimen after finishing five weeks of pre-season training without any pain.
He is scheduled to compete for Greece in the United Cup, drawn against Naomi Osaka's Japan and the British team captained by Raducanu. The competition takes place in Perth and Sydney from 2 to 11 January, the week preceding the Australian Open.
"My main goal next season would be to not have concerns about finishing matches," he expressed.
"It is incredibly encouraging to know you had an off-season in good health – I wish for it to last. I aim to perform during the upcoming season and for the United Cup.
"The effort is invested. The most important thing is complete faith in my ability to get back to where I was. I will try all means to achieve that."
