Stefanos Tsitsipas requested his mom to leave the stadium after she spoke Russian in his match at the 2023 Italian Open in Rome.
The relationship between parents and their kids who are professional athletes is well-known in the world of sports. On the ATP Tour, there are a few players who are coached by their parents, and Tsitsipas is one of them.
His father, Apostolos Tsitsipas, is the head coach of Tsitsipas's team, while his mother, Julia Apostoli, who is a former WTA player, also occasionally offers some advice. Yet Stefanos doesn't always appreciate the help from his parents, and that's understandable.
Most recently, the Greek player was competing in the semi-final of the WTA 1000 tournament in Rome, taking on his rival Daniil Medvedev. Tsitsipas was just broken in the first set, which he subsequently lost 5-7 when the interaction between him and his parents occurred.
Tsitsipas's mother, Julia Apostoli, was born in Moscow, Russia, and she naturally speaks Russian language, as does Stefanos. As such, she wanted to give her son instructions in Russian language, something that would work against the vast majority of opponents on the ATP Tour.
However, Tsitsipas's opponent in that match, Daniil Medvedev, is Russian. That obviously angered Tsitsipas, as he knew his opponent could understand everything.
When he returned to his bench during the break between the sets, he addressed a few words to his mom as he didn't want her present in his box.
"I'm going to serve and you're speaking in Russian, you better leave the court."
Tsitsipas asked his team to escort his mother off the court. Apostoli left his box but continued watching the match from a different seat in the arena.
Eventually, that didn't help Tsitsipas, as Medvedev outplayed him in two sets. The Russian reached his first ATP 1000 final on clay and even celebrated it with a victory dance.
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