The Greek tennis sensation Stefanos Tsitsipas cruised past home favorite Jordan Thompson in a hard-fought second-round match to clinch a spot in the next one. He defeated the Australian 4-6 7-6(6) 6-2 7-6(4) after going a set behind in the first one. After the match, Tsitsipas was joined by John McEnroe who asked him some interesting questions.
One of those questions revolved around getting over the hump for Stefanos. Novak The Greek has been to the Grand Slam finals twice in his career but has failed to win a title. But there’s more similarity between those finals than the outcome of those matches i.e. Novak Djokovic.
Djokovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas have locked horns twice in a Grand Slam final setting, but the Serb has been able to handle business in both of them. One of those finals was last year’s Australian Open where the Serbian defeated him to capture his tenth Grand Slam title in Melbourne.
So, when McEnroe asked Tsitsipas about the expectations from him this year, the Greek star just had to mention his rival’s name. Last year, Novak beat the Greek player 6-3, 7-6(4), 7-6(5) in the final to claim his 10th Major title in Australia.
Maximum respect given to Djokovic by Tsitsipas ✊ @jelenadjokovic @DjokerNole pic.twitter.com/Sel0iKW7tc
— Tennis Puneet 🎾 📚 (@TennisPuneet) January 17, 2024
He said that unless one day Novak wakes up to be more generous and selfless, there is an inferior chance of anyone else winning it.
“I think numbers don’t lie. Novak has been able to win here 12 times. He’s a very selfish person. So I think if he just manages to wake up one day feeling less selfish and kind of ‘sharing is caring more’ type of vibe, then I guess,” said the Greek star.
“There are two scenarios [on how I can win a Grand Slam title], whether someone needs to be Novak that is not me or it has to be me. So we’ll have to find a way, either way,” he added.
Stefanos Tsitsipas sinks under pressure yet again as Novak wins his 10th Australian Open title
Stefanos Tsitsipas was an unexpected finalist for most people at the Australian Open last season. He had an incredible run that ran its course until the finals.
The Greek faced a mammoth challenge in the finals when he faced the nine-time Australian Open champion. He got decimated in three straight sets losing 3-6, 6 (4)-7, 6 (5)-7 by Novak. Even though he fought hard in the second and third set, he was never quite able to shake his Serbian opponent.
Tsitsipas will eye revenge for his loss from last year because this year he’s one of the contenders for making it to the finals and winning it all. He is among a short bracket of players who not only have the experience of playing under a pressure-inducing finals situation but are also the hungriest to prove themselves. His final experience from last year will also play a key role in it.
Stefanos Tsitsipas continues his conquest for a maiden Major title in the third round of the Australian Open and faces Luca Van Assche.
