'Privileged & Advantaged': How Parents With Tennis Background Helped Tsitsipas

| by Balasz Virag

Stefanos Tsitsipas' tennis journeys seemed like something that was bound to happen but it wasn't a smooth journey.

In some ways, Stefanos Tsitsipas was destined for tennis with his father being a tennis coach and his mother being a professional tennis player. They met through tennis which makes Tsitsipas quite literally a tennis baby born from the love of his parents towards the game.

He grew up loving the game as well with his brother a tennis player as well. Luckily for him, his tennis talent cup was filled with plenty making him one of the best players of today. A healthy mindset on top of that talent makes him a rather polarizing player. Recently, the Greek spoke to The New York Times about his upbringing.

It felt like a natural procedure to follow tennis. I felt privileged that I had two parents in the industry. I knew it was a place where I could gain unlimited knowledge because they were always around it. I felt, in a way, like I had an advantage over other kids my age, being exposed to it more, having my parents teach me every day and bringing me deeper into this discipline.

Tsitsipas on becoming a tennis player

Being number one and winning grand slams was always a goal for Tsitsipas but he has far more noble goals than that. Being able to promote tennis in a country that doesn't show much interest in it is both a challenge and a blessing. He has taken great pride in sporting Hellas on the shirt and living to see tennis flourish in his country is a dream.

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I think I’m at a place in my career where I can do that. I’ve had the privilege of doing a few clinics and spending time back home, spreading the word and having people come join.

A very glamorous sport on a surface level, tennis is rather brutally competitive. Travelling around the world and playing a sport seems like great fun and it is if you truly love it. It's not that glamorous as most of the time you're focusing on tennis, whether it's in Acapulco or indoors in Paris in November.

The Netflix show Break Point showed very well how competitive and tough the sport is with Tsitsipas himself having a part in it. He took part with the hopes of making the sport bigger and more popular, with hopefully some Greek accounts tuning in as well. Keeping it real is something Tsitsipas believes is essential. That's what he'd tell the younger generations coming up.

I’d definitely tell them there’s more suffering in this sport than pleasure. Pleasure is there on the court but it’s also going to be painful, dealing with losses and defeats. It’s important to be mature with your defeats, learn from them and move on. And always stay humble with your wins. Always have your friends and family near you, to be able to live through that journey together and to have a good time.

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