By Richard Pagliaro Wednesday, February 11, 2026
Photo credit: Matthew Calvis
Painful back problems and premature finish take the fun out of tennis Stefanos Tsitsipas last season.
Tsitsipas, ranked 32nd in the world, is committed to finding his form this season and regaining the joy of playing.
talking Nicholas Albeck Exclusive interview with Bolavip After his 7-5, 6-3 victory over eighth seed Arthur Lindeknecht in Rotterdam today, Tsitsipas said his back injury last season was so serious that he felt more like a spectator than an ATP Tour player.
“Well, I didn’t play tennis for a long time, which I never had in my career. I felt so removed from the court and the competition that all of a sudden I was just an observer of tennis and the ATP Tour, rather than a participant.”
“It does feel very strange and frustrating because there’s nothing I can do,” Tsitsipas told Nicolas Albeck about Bolavip. “My back is like this and there’s only so much I can do, but if my back doesn’t get better and it doesn’t heal, the only thing I can do is wait and see as many doctors as I can who are experts in this area.”
The former world number three has been suffering from back problems that have kept him out of the second round in his final nine matches in 2025. After Tsitsipas lost to Daniel Altmaier 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-4, 3-6, 5-7 at the 2025 US Open, Tsitsipas played only two matches, both Davis Cup matches, before withdrawing in 2025.
The 27-year-old Tsitsipas started the 2025 season ranked 11th, but due to a back injury, the former French Open and Australian Open finalist failed to reach the second round of all four Grand Slam tournaments last season, so his ranking fell to 32nd.
Tsitsipas said he was glad he was able to train pain-free in December and hoped he would be pain-free during this year’s competition.
The Greek is already off to a 7-2 start in 2026, including wins over Taylor Fritz and Rinderknech.
Tsitsipas next faces Botik van der Zande Schulp in Rotterdam, and the question is can he stay fit and active?
Tsitsipas said time will tell.
“I’ve had uncertainty for many months. I’ve been there for a while, even though I won the race in Dubai,” Tsitsipas said. “I wasn’t sure if I could maintain this level or even keep playing. It got worse in the spring, so I wasn’t enjoying the game anymore.
“The game becomes less important and health becomes the most important thing in your life, but even at the start of this year I still had a lot of uncertainty about my future.
