Stefanos Tsitsipas Contemplated Walking Away During Injury-Plagued Campaign
The athlete entered the previous US Open as the 26th seed.
The tennis professional disclosed he thought about 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, finished as runner-up to 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 post a early exit at the US Open in August, he stated that ongoing treatment has begun yielding encouraging progress.
"I'm most excited lies in seeing how my body holds up under actual training concerning my injury," said Tsitsipas.
"My primary worry was whether I could complete an encounter," he added, noting the injury plagued him "over the last six to eight months."
"I would wonder, 'Am I able to play in another match without discomfort?'"
"It was genuinely scary after the defeat at the US Open [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I could not to move for 48 hours. That is the moment start reconsidering the path ahead."
Tsitsipas further mentioned satisfaction regarding the present treatment regimen after finishing an extended period of off-season preparation without any pain.
He is scheduled to compete with the Greek team in the United Cup, where they face Naomi Osaka's Japan and the British team captained by Raducanu. The competition will be held in Perth and Sydney in early January, the week preceding the season's first major.
"My main goal for 2026 would be to stop worrying about finishing matches," he stated.
"It provides fantastic feedback to know you had a pre-season without pain – I hope it continues. I want to deliver during the upcoming season and for the team championship.
"I have done the work. The most important thing is total belief in my ability to get back to my previous level. I will attempt everything to make it happen."