🔗 Share this article The Greek tennis star Contemplated Retirement During Injury-Plagued Campaign Stefanos Tsitsipas was the 26th seed at last year's US Open The tennis professional disclosed 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 alongside the 2023 Australian Open. Currently placed as the world's 36th best player after a limited schedule since his early exit in New York in August, he stated that ongoing treatment has begun yielding encouraging progress. "My greatest anticipation is to observe 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," he added, explaining the pain had troubled him "over the last six to eight months." "I would wonder, 'Am I able to play another contest without discomfort?'" "I became truly frightened after the defeat at the US Open [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I could not to walk for 48 hours. That is the moment start reconsidering the path ahead." He also reported satisfaction regarding his current recovery plan following the completion of five weeks of off-season preparation completely pain-free. He is scheduled to compete for Greece in the United Cup, drawn against Team Japan led by Osaka and the Great Britain squad led by Emma Raducanu. The competition will be held in Perth and Sydney in early January, just before the Australian Open. "My main goal next season would be to not have concerns about finishing matches," he stated. "It is incredibly encouraging to know you had a pre-season in good health – I hope it continues. I want to deliver in 2026 and at the United Cup. "The effort is invested. The crucial element is complete faith that I can return to my previous level. I will attempt everything to achieve that."