Stefanos Tsitsipas’s “breakup” with his father, Apostolos, is not indefinite, as he himself stated. “He now has the experience to make the right decisions, and whenever he needs my help, I’m here,” the veteran coach told Canal Tenis during his visit to the ITF tournament in Roda de Barra.

“I now keep a little distance from his daily and competitive schedule, but I’m in constant communication with the team and with Stefanos. I’m confident he’s gained the experience to make the right choices, and whenever he needs anything, he can always count on me,” he continued, adding: “I’m sure that for a while, he’ll need to figure out exactly what he needs and what qualities he’s looking for in a coaching partnership. As I said, though, I’m always here whenever he needs me. And I’m sure I’ll coach him again, even in the near future. In any case, coaching is a very dynamic process. It all depends on how the player feels at each stage of his career. We’ve seen many times how athletes who have one coach add a second or even three coaches to their team, trying to find inspiration and discover something new in their game through this collaboration.”.

As for his decline in performance? “I think there are a few reasons for his performance this season. The main one was his injury. We know very well that when an athlete gets injured and doesn’t feel 100% confident in his body, his physical condition is affected, and that, in turn, affects his mental state. At the end of the day, it all comes down to proper planning and management, because the season is very long. Making wise decisions about how to take care of your body, how to compete, and how to perform smartly—what I call “smart performance”— —can help you have a better year overall and achieve better results.”

In any case, he believes that “Stef” can return to his past high standards: “I believe he can get back to the top. He’s been there before; he knows what it means to reach that level and he knows what it takes to get there. If he works hard, methodically, and smartly, I’m certain he can do it again. He’s now a very experienced athlete. If he were a young player just starting his professional career alongside his father, it might make more sense for him to be closer to the man who brought him to prominence. But now he has a wealth of experience, a deep understanding of tennis, has already achieved many of his goals, and knows how to achieve them again.”

Finally, when asked to comment on the remarks made by his son’s ex-partner, Paola Badosa, regarding toxicity, he said: “I don’t believe it. These days we hear the word ‘toxic’ all the time—toxic, toxic, toxic. But that’s life. People get close, share experiences, and often prioritize their goals and careers, which means they can’t invest as much as they’d like in their relationship. This can often be a problem in modern society, because traditional gender roles—where this is the woman’s role and that is the man’s—no longer apply. Today, everyone has their own career and their own life. If people manage to find a balance between all of these things, then things can be truly wonderful. However, I don’t agree that this is something toxic.”

*photo source: AP