“Roger Federer has a Very Difficult Style to Copy”: Stefanos Tsitsipas

Stefanos Tsitsipas praised Roger Federer for doing certain things on the court which is really difficult to copy after thrashing him in straight sets 6-3, 6-4 in the semifinals of the ATP World Tour Finals 2019 on Saturday.

The debutant Stefanos Tsitsipas and number 5 seed Dominic Thiem will battle to win their biggest title yet in the finals of the ATP World Tour Finals 2019 on Sunday. Ahead of their title match at the O2 Arena in London, the Greek gun reveals that Dominic Thiem has inspired him a lot of what he can achieve on the court.

“Dominic has inspired me a lot to be a better version of myself when I’m out on the court. I see a lot of things that he does on the court, and I try to do the same,” Tsitsipas said.

The 21-year-old explained that what Thiem does is possible and hence he finds the inspiration behind him while what Roger Federer does on the court is beyond anyone’s limit.

He added: “Because I have mentioned this before: what Roger does, only Roger does. It’s really difficult to copy what you see. So to me, Dominic is more, like, something normal, normal in a way that something that’s possible, something that’s possible.”

“Roger is an exceptional talent. We all know that. He has a very difficult game style to copy. So for me, Dominic has always been someone that I looked up to and wanted to, wanted always to play with the same intensity and the same will that he puts in the court,” explained Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Sunday’s final will be the seventh match between Dominic Thiem and Stefanos Tsitsipas with the former leading the pair’s head-to-head series 4-2, with their most recent meeting coming at the 2019 China Open final when the Austrian triumphed in a thrilling three-setter 3-6, 6-4, 6-1.