Stefanos Tsitsipas may have 'hit the wall,' believes Pam Shriver, as she recalls own struggle against Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf

Pam Shriver recently recalled her struggle against Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf, and Monica Seles while wondering if Stefanos Tsitsipas may have hit the wall as well.

Stefanos Tsitsipas has won a title this season at the Los Cabos Open. He has also reached two other finals at the Barcelona Open as well as the Australian Open.

However, his three finals hardly give the complete picture. The Greek’s season has otherwise been a damp squib, which can be attributed to a persistent shoulder injury and frequent changes to his coaching team.

Former American tennis player Pam Shriver assessed the player’s subpar season.

“A lot of turbulence. A lot of on and off court social media posts; lot of stuff about the coaching situation; dating [Paula Badosa],” she said on episode 86 of the Inside-In podcast.

Shriver expressed that the fellow former World No. 3 may have also hit the wall in an effort to outdo his biggest opponents, pointing at the rise of younger players such as Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, and Ben Shelton.

She recalled how she similarly came up short in the race against the likes of Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf, and Monica Seles.

“I know what it’s like to be a chaser and not quite get there. It was exhausting. I had about eight or nine years where I was somewhere between three and seven in the world, trying to chase down Chrissie, Martina, then Graf and Seles, and I eventually hit the wall around when I was 27-28,” she revealed.

“So, whether or not that’s happening to Tsitsipas now, and kind of like [he’s] disheartened now, seeing the quality of Alcaraz, Sinner, and even Shelton,” she added.

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"It's up to the maturing adult" – Pam Shriver on Stefanos Tsitsipas on revitalizing partnership with father Apostolos

Stefanos Tsitsipas with father Apostolos

Pam Shriver also expressed her concern about Stefanos Tsitsipas’ instable coaching situation.

The Greek, who was coached by Mark Philippoussis and his father Apostolos, terminated his partnership with the Australian earlier this year.

Just months later, however, Philippoussis was readmitted to the team as the main coach, only to be given the boot weeks later. Stefanos Tsitsipas later revealed that he is now back with his father.

Pam Shriver criticized the way Stefanos Tsitsipas parted ways with Mark Pilippoussis.

“They’ve had like this in-and-out. So, I think if I was Philippoussis, if I was asked to go back a third time, I’d have to say, N O,” she said on the Inside-In podcast.

The American, who has previously stated her displeasure with former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin returning to her father, opined that players should not be dependent on their parents.

“It’s interesting when you look at [Sofia Kenin] and her dad, and even Coco Gauff and her dad, and Tsitsipas. It’s a combination of, you’ve got a young adult and you want them to strive towards independence from their parents,” she said.

“You want them to be supportive of their family, but have their own path, and so it’s up to both. It’s up to the maturing adult. In this case, the young player, but it’s also really up to the parent to give the green light that it’s okay for the parent to take a step back,” she continued.

Shriver then praised Coco Gauff’s father, Corey, who recently decided to take a back seat. It is worth noting that the teenager has since won the three biggest titles of her career at the Citi Open, the Cincinnati Open, and the US Open.

“That’s why I highlighted what Corey Gauff has done to help Coco,” Shriver noted.