The Greek tennis star Seriously Considered Walking Away Amid Pain-Filled Campaign

Stefanos Tsitsipas has revealed he pondered ending his career because of debilitating spinal pain throughout the season.

The 27-year-old, who has reached a career-high ranking of world number three, was a finalist against Novak Djokovic at both the 2021 French Open alongside the 2023 Australian Open.

Now ranked 36th in the world after a limited schedule since his early exit in New York this past summer, Tsitsipas indicated that ongoing treatment has begun yielding positive results.

"My greatest anticipation is to observe how my body responds during regular practice concerning my injury," said Tsitsipas.

"The biggest fear centered on if I could complete an encounter," he added, noting the injury had troubled him "over the last six to eight months."

"I kept asking, 'Am I able to play in another match pain-free?'"

"It was genuinely scary following the loss at the US Open [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I could not to walk for 48 hours. That's when you start reconsidering the path ahead."

Tsitsipas further mentioned satisfaction regarding his current recovery plan after finishing five weeks of off-season preparation without any pain.

His next appearance with the Greek team in the United Cup, drawn against Team Japan led by Osaka and the Great Britain squad led by Emma Raducanu. The competition takes place across Australian cities in early January, the week preceding the Australian Open.

"My main goal next season is to stop worrying over completing bouts," he stated.

"It is incredibly encouraging to know you had an off-season in good health – I hope it continues. I want to deliver during the upcoming season and for the United Cup.

"The effort is invested. The crucial element is complete faith that I can return to where I was. I will try all means to achieve that."