Stefanos Tsitsipas started off the year with astounding form reaching the finals of the Australian Open. Though he could not clinch victory there, under the guidance of his ex-coach Mark Philippoussis and his father Apostolos Tsitsipas, he maintained his form so far. However, off the court, it hasn’t been going well for a former member of his team. His ex-coach has now found himself in a challenging position.

The former coach of the Greek tennis star has recently been fined by the International Tennis Integrity Agency for malpractice which had brought him to face dire consequences.

Former coach of Stefanos Tsitsipas faces the brunt of tennis authorities for severe malpractice

Tennis has always upheld the bar of instilling true sportsmanship. Therefore, not adhering to the rules and regulations also comes with a lot of consequences. And right now, the former coach of Stefanos Tsitsipas is on the receiving end. Mark Philippoussis engaged in a banned activity related to the tennis betting sponsorship rules.

He received payment for providing a voiceover to promotional content for a gaming operator. Now, he not only faced a whopping $10,000 fine but also has been suspended from the sport for four months.

This becomes concerning as Mark Philippoussis also holds the position of a former top-10 ATP singles player. Apart from that, he had recently severed ties with Tsitsipas before the French Open. Now the coach was working with another top Greek player, Maria Sakkari. She hired him for the grass-court season where she faced a first-round defeat at SW19.

But why did the Greek star sever his ties with the Australian tennis coach? Tsitsipas stated he believes in “less is more” as he was getting stressed out because of two opinions coming from the player’s box.

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It is because his father Apostolos Tsitsipas has always been his coach and has played a dominant role in his gameplay. Often, his views differ from Tsitsipas’ coaches, which eventually takes a toll on the Greek player.

How has Tsitsipas persevered after Philippoussis?

Seems like the decision did not bear good results for the Greek player as well. He faced a defeat by Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-finals of the French Open. After that, at Wimbledon too, he only reached the fourth round.

Now, a lot of tennis enthusiasts have blamed the Greek player for getting distracted. He and Spanish tennis star Paula Badosa recently made their relationship public. Moreover, they have continued to publicly update their fans about it through their joint Instagram account, Tsitsidosa.

Do you think Tsitsipas is lagging behind because of getting distracted? Or was parting ways with Mark Philippoussis not a good decision? Let us know your views in the comments below.

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