“Create Our Own Unique Story”: Stefanos Tsitsipas Posts Encouraging Update Following ATP Finals 2021 Disappointment

After a phenomenal run to his ATP campaign in the first half of this year, world no.4 Stefanos Tsitsipas couldn’t manage to repeat the same feat during the second half of the season. Despite a couple of semi-final appearances at Cincinnati and Montreal, the Greek largely felt out of place due to a recurring injury.

According to Tsitsipas, he has been facing trouble with his arm over the past couple of years and the withdrawal from ATP Finals midway proved that Tsitsipas had to go under the knife.

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Stefanos Tsitsipas posts injury update for fans

The Greek star posted a lengthy message on his Facebook page after surgery, thanking fans for their unending support.

“Things often get tougher before they get easier but with each struggle we get an opportunity to create our own unique story. To all the fans, thank you for your continuous support and encouragement”.

Tsitsipas also gave hope to fans for next season as he will be starting his 2022 season preparation in a couple of weeks from now in Dubai. In all likelihood, the Greek will be seen in Melbourne next year for the Australian Open.

The second-half of this year has been tough for Tsitsipas off the court as he received flak from fans and players alike for taking long bathroom breaks in his matches. Players like Andy Murray and Alexander Zverev vocally expressed their frustration over the Greek’s lengthy toilet breaks.

Tsitsipas had a controversial second half of ATP season

During their intense first-round contest in New York where the match headed into a final-set, Tsitsipas went for a changeover and took his time to walk back to the court.

“It’s not so much leaving the court. It’s the amount of time. It’s nonsense and he knows it. It’s just disappointing because I feel it influenced the outcome of the match”, Murray vented out his frustration post losing the match in the final set.

Even though Stefanos Tsitsipas technically didn’t break the ATP rules, he indirectly became instrumental in the men’s governing body changing their ‘bathroom break’ rule, starting next year.

The new rule states that players will be given one bathroom break per match and that it has to remain under three minutes. Time violations will be enforced if a player is not on-court in the stipulated time.

With drama off-court and struggle on-court, Stefanos Tsitsipas’ 2021 season is a mixed bag. The best possible result for the Greek came at Roland Garros, where he reached his first-ever Grand Slam final and lost to Novak Djokovic in a five-set marathon.

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