'Not That Kind Of Person': Tsitsipas Issues Statement On Abrupt ATP Finals Retirement

Wednesday, 15 November 2023 at 04:36

bySebastian Dahlman

Stefanos Tsitsipas disappointed many fans by retiring from his match against Holger Rune at the 2023 ATP Finals, and he issued an apology because of it.

Getting injured is not in the player's control, and while no player would choose to get injured, it sometimes happens. Tsitsipas has dealt with some elbow issues leading up to this event, but he retired from the match because of a back injury.

It left him unable to play, and it was visible. He didn't look right from the start, and his body language was terrible, so when he retired after only three games in, we knew why. After the match, Tsitsipas apologized to the fans and the crowd.

First of all, hello, everyone. My apologies to all the fans and the crowd that came to support me today and watch the match. I'm really gutted the that I wasn't able to finish the match. It's a shame also not to give that spot to someone else to at least try and do something with it.

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Tsitsipas also confirmed that the doctors gave him the green light to play the match, but upon finally starting to play, he realized that it wasn't going to happen.

My doctors and the countless visits that I had in last few days suggested that I play, gave me the green light to go and try it for myself, so... Unfortunately, I felt terrible on the court. I did what I could do in the best possible way to be ready and fit for this match, but it didn't work out for me.

Retiring from matches isn't something Tsitsipas generally does, and he was visibly upset that he had to do it. He said earlier in his career that he doesn't like retiring matches and confirmed it again.

I hate retiring from matches. I'm not the kind of person that likes leaving mid match. It kills me not to be able to finish this tournament, the one that I've prepped for for so long, made sure that I'm completely fit to perform at my best and show my capacities as a player.