The Greek tennis star Contemplated Retirement During Pain-Filled Campaign
The athlete entered the previous US Open as the 26th seed.
Stefanos Tsitsipas has revealed he pondered quitting the sport because of severe spinal pain during the season.
The 27-year-old, who has reached a career-high ranking of world number three, was a finalist against Novak Djokovic in the finals of 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 in August, he stated continuous medical care is finally showing encouraging progress.
"I'm most excited is to observe how my body holds up under actual training concerning my back," commented Tsitsipas.
"My primary worry centered on if I was able to finish a match," he added, explaining the pain plagued him "for the past half a year or more."
"I kept asking, 'Can I compete another contest pain-free?'"
"I became truly frightened after the defeat in Flushing Meadows [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I was unable to move for two days. That is the moment begin to question the path ahead."
Tsitsipas further mentioned satisfaction regarding his current recovery plan following the completion of five weeks of pre-season training completely pain-free.
His next appearance for Greece at the team event, where they face Team Japan led by Osaka and the British team led by Emma Raducanu. The competition takes place in Perth and Sydney in early January, the week preceding the Australian Open.
"My main goal next season would be to not have concerns about finishing matches," he stated.
"It provides fantastic feedback 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 that I can return to my previous level. I will try all means to achieve that."
