Former top star Stefanos Tsitsipas is experiencing the most difficult phase of his career. One early exit followed the next and he was plagued by physical problems. Now the Greek has even dropped out of the top 50.

Stefanos Tsitsipas is regarded as the best tennis player in Greek history. At the beginning of his career, he was even expected to become number 1 and win a string of Grand Slams. No wonder, as the Greek even defeated the Big Three of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer at a young age and won the ATP Finals. He fought his way up to third place in the world rankings and seemed to be well on his way to conquering the tennis world.

Fast forward six or seven years and the present looks very different. Although he has also reached two Grand Slam finals, one of which he lost after leading in two sets, this was followed by a fall that has now reached its sad low point. After his first-round exit in Indian Wells, Tsitsipas even slipped out of the top 50 – his worst ranking in eight years.

The tennis mystery surrounding Stefanos Tsitsipas

The drop in performance is no coincidence. For around a year now, the Greek has failed to return to his former consistency and has barely managed more than two wins in a row.

Tsitsipas has also recently experienced disappointment at his favorite tournament, the Australian Open. After reaching the semi-finals there three times and the final once, which he lost to Djokovic in 2023, the Greek was eliminated in the second round at the beginning of the year.

The failures coupled with physical problems even took the joy out of tennis for the 27-year-old for a while. “Even when I won the tournament in Dubai, I was unsure whether I would be able to maintain my level or continue playing at all. It got worse and worse over the course of the spring, and I finally stopped enjoying the game.”

Even ending his career before the age of 30 doesn’t seem out of the question at the moment – that would be a huge shame, as his path to the top of tennis seemed to be mapped out.

Tsitsipas: Steep ascent followed by steep descent

He first appeared in the top 500 of the world rankings back in 2016, one year later he was already in the top 100. Two years later he was finally named “Most Improved Player of the Year” and established himself in the world elite over the years.

The Greek player achieved his best ranking in August 2021 with third place. He also established himself in the top five in the two years that followed and was regularly one of the hottest contenders for titles.

However, this was followed by a turnaround, a negative trend consolidated, all the defeats against the biggest stars around Djokovic gnawed at his self-confidence, which was now increasingly evident in inexplicable performances, even against weaker players.

There were other influences outside of the tennis court that could be linked to the decline in sport. On the one hand, his love affair with tennis pro Paula Badosa came to an end.

Successful coaches kept coming on board and his otherwise influential and vocal father Apostolos Tsitsipas was supposed to step back a little – but this agreement often didn’t last long and coaches such as former pro Goran Ivanisevic, who also publicly criticized him, often resigned quickly. His father also officially returned to the Tsitsipas team, which has done little to help his career so far.

Tsitsipas even hints at early career end

At the same time, Tsitsipas has recently been struggling more and more with physical problems, which have also had an impact on his mental state. His back in particular has caused the Greek a number of problems in recent months.

After his defeat at the US Open 2025 against the German Daniel Altmaier, Tsitsipas spoke openly about his situation: “I was really worried about my back because I couldn’t walk for two days. When something like that happens, you start to think about the future of your career.”

How much these thoughts are on his mind was also evident in October 2025 at the Six Kings Slam in Saudi Arabia. After a clear defeat against Jannik Sinner (2:6, 3:6), Tsitsipas said: “When you’re not fit, in such a bad condition – all the time and not just one or two weeks – then a lot of thoughts go through your head.”

He also spoke openly about phases in which he asked himself fundamental questions. “Why am I doing this? In the end, it’s more important to me to be happy and free than to have problems because of pain because of the sport I love. I would rather put an end to it if it goes on like this,“ Tsitsipas stated.

Last year, the 27-year-old was still looking forward with confidence to a more successful and pain-free new tennis year: ”I hope it will be different in 2026, that’s my biggest wish.” However, neither the problems with his back seem to have disappeared completely, nor does the return to more sporting success seem to be working out.

Tsitsipas is now trying to turn things around at the Miami Open – if he fails early again, his doubts as to whether it all makes sense will probably only increase.