Stefanos Tsitsipas reached his breaking point just before SW19. For most of his career, his father, Apostolos Tsitsipas, had been a constant presence in the player’s box as a coach. However, that long-standing partnership has suddenly ended. As the current World No. 87 begins a new chapter, hoping a fresh start brings the turnaround he needs, he interviewed with SDNA to explain the split.

“The older I get, the more difficult it is for me to maintain a stable relationship with my father, compared to when I was a little kid, 18-19-20 years old. I believe that my father needs other things, just as I need different things. I felt it in the daily energy of our collaboration. I feel that we have reached a point where I am now looking for something completely different. 

“This is all very sensitive. It’s difficult because we’ve spent many years together on tour, but talking about it now, I believe that we won’t be working together again in the future. Now I want to start making my own decisions and deciding for myself.” 

For now, the 27-year-old is working with France-based tennis coach Thomas Perrin from Mouratoglou Academy. 

The former coach of Serena Williams, Patrick Mouratoglou, will continue to help whenever he can. However, Tsitsipas’ reunion with his 58-year-old father appears to be completely off the table.

Tsitsipas has trained at Mouratoglou’s academy since age 15 and knows Perrin well from that tenure.

However, his recent struggles may also have influenced the decision. The Greek ace hasn’t been able to rediscover the level that once made him one of the best players in the world.

Tsitsipas last ranked in the top-20 and the top-10 in 2025. His highest world rank was 3 back in 2021. However, since then, his performances have been inconsistent and, sometimes, hard to watch. The reason could be the right elbow surgery he underwent in November 2021. This season has been especially challenging for him. The 2019 ATP Finals winner is 16-14 on the season and has dropped to 87 in the world ranking.

Now, the winner of 12 ATP Tour-level titles will begin his SW19 campaign against 25-year-old French ace Hugo Gaston on Monday. And although he insists he will not return to his father, tennis fans have seen them part ways before and know that things can always change.

Stefanos Tsitsipas parted ways with his father following the 2024 Canadian Open clash

In August 2024, Stefanos Tsitsipas suffered a shocking defeat to former world No. 4 Kei Nishikori at the Canadian Open. What made that loss even more memorable that time was the heated exchange between Tsitsipas and Apostolos during the match. 

Just hours after the emotional encounter, Stefanos made a huge decision. He fired his father, who had coached him since he was 12, bringing their professional partnership to an end. Goran Ivanisevic coached him for two months in the summer of 2025 before parting ways. He rehired his father but has parted ways with him again.

This time, though, the relationship between father and son has reached a breaking point. In recent ATP seasons, visible disagreements during matches have become more frequent between them, and Tsitsipas’ mother, Julia Salnikova, has often been involved as well.

That said, Tsitsipas recently spoke about the new setup with Perrin:

“Thomas has been in high performance for many years and has worked with other athletes. I’ll have Patrick’s oversight as well — he’ll be at certain tournaments whenever he can. That’s the solution through the end of the year.”

With his SW19 match coming up shortly, all eyes will be on how he performs under the new coaching structure. Whether this split will help him rediscover his best tennis remains the biggest question for fans as of now.