Stefanos Tsitsipas has shed light on the back injury which forced him out of the 2023 ATP Finals.
Tsitsipas made his fifth consecutive ATP Finals appearance this season. The 2019 champion, however, was dealing with a back issue in Turin. He decided it was best to retire from the tournament midway through his second group-stage match against Holger Rune.
The Greek recently opened up about how the injury impacted him mentally and physically. He said that not being able to stick it out during the final event of the season was "painful."
"The injury was painful – metaphorically painful, because I wasn’t able to complete the last tournament of the year," Tsitsipas said. "So, it had a big toll on my body," he said during an interview with Adelaide Now.
Stefanos Tsitsipas added that he was unable to 'wake up and get out of bed' in the days following his retirement.
"For the next few days after the ATP Finals, I was struggling to wake up and get out of bed," he said. "In fact, the amount of pain I was going through for one to two weeks was very big."
Stefanos Tsitsipas on his 2024 campaign amid injury concerns: "I have faith that I will be ready by then and things will work out"
Stefanos Tsitsipas’ off-season may not have panned out as well as he would have hoped, but the Greek provided an optimistic update on his back injury during his interview with Adelaide Now.
"It’s looking better; I’m getting better," Tsitsipas said. "I’m doing a lot of things every single day to reduce the pain that I have as much as possible and as quickly as possible to get it back to normal. It will take a little bit of time. I’m still not 1000 per cent."
Before his ATP Finals back injury, the 25-year-old battled a persistent right shoulder injury as well, which he first incurred during his run in Melbourne.
The two-time Grand Slam finalist said, however, that he is now on the right track. He also expressed willingness to change his approach if he fails to reach his top form ahead of the 2024 season.
"Now I am on the right track to get it back to where it was before, which is healthy and no pain," he said. "If I am not able to get there, which hopefully knock on wood does not happen, then I will probably have to take a different approach and different direction to what I do."
"I have faith that I will be ready by then and things will work out. Of course, you want to have as many weeks as possible to prepare before a big event like the Australian Open," he added.
Stefanos Tsitsipas is currently in Dubai, where he plans to train during the off-season. The World No. 6 is accompanied by his girlfriend Paula Badosa, who is similarly recovering from a back injury.
The couple is also scheduled to take part in the World Tennis League exhibition event in Abu Dhabi from December 21-24, where they will represent Team Kites.