"I'm not Harry Potter, I won't change everything overnight," Ivanisevic warns Tsitsipas before the start of their collaboration
Struggling with a severe lack of confidence for many months, Stefanos Tsitsipas is searching for his best form. Dropping out of the top 20 this week after eight consecutive years among the ATP rankings' elite, the Greek player is faltering, no longer able to compete at the highest level in major tournaments.
In fact, the world No. 26 hasn’t reached the second week of a Grand Slam tournament since Roland-Garros a year ago. After experiencing some tension with his father, Tsitsipas—who was eliminated in the second round of Roland-Garros by Matteo Gigante (a qualifier)—will now work with Goran Ivanisevic.
The 2001 Wimbledon champion will try to steer his new protégé back on track during the grass-court season, following his unsuccessful collaboration with Elena Rybakina earlier this year.
"Right now, I can’t say whether Stefanos (Tsitsipas) is in his best physical and tennis condition. He’s a player who should be in the top five, given his potential, his results, and everything else.
I’m not Harry Potter. I don’t have a magic wand; I won’t change everything overnight. But of course, if he works hard and our collaboration goes well, the results will come—with or without me.
He’s too strong a player to be where he is in the rankings right now and to be playing the way he is currently. The priority was to settle on a racket model to use. He tested twelve, but he’s made his choice," Ivanisevic recently told Punto De Break.
When tennis stars change courts: from Noah the singer to Safin the deputy, another match – the battle of reinvention
As a laboratory for tomorrow’s tennis, does the Next Gen Masters have a future?
Tennis: the little-known truths about the offseason, between rest, stress and physical survival
What if tennis lost its soul? The case of robotized officiating, between tradition and a dehumanized modernity