Popyrin's stark assessment: "It was probably the least enjoyable season of my career"
Alexei Popyrin has struggled to confirm this year. The surprise winner of the 2024 Montreal Masters 1000 and the conqueror of Novak Djokovic in the third round of the US Open a few weeks later, the Australian seemed to be on the rise, but his 2025 season has been very disappointing.
In fact, he hasn't played a single semi-final on the main tour since January, only reaching the quarter-finals in Geneva, Monte-Carlo, and Toronto. Still ranked 19th in the world in August, he has now dropped out of the top 50 and is aware that he will need to raise the bar in the coming months.
Five consecutive defeats to end the season
The 26-year-old player ended his season with five first-round exits and hasn't tasted the joy of a victory since his opening match at the US Open against the returning Emil Ruusuvuori, who was absent from the tour for many months to preserve his mental health. Admittedly, he has since lost to Sinner, Berrettini, Korda, and Bublik, but he has clearly lacked confidence throughout the season.
"I feel I have the level to return to the top 20, my current ranking doesn't worry me. However, I don't like being where I am currently. I know what I'm capable of and what I can do with my game. When I am in a good state of mind and have good feelings in training, everything will fall into place.
I had some bad luck with injuries at the start of the season, I was also sick. In tennis, you are destined to have seasons like this, but the important thing is to know how to recover. I needed rest. I spent two and a half, even three months without resting, between travel, training, and competition.
I think I had reached a point the week before Wimbledon where I didn't feel ready. It was probably the least enjoyable season of my career so far, but I learned a lot about how I will approach the rest of my career.
I was looking forward to coming home. It's my favorite time of the year. I was able to spend some time with my family in Australia. That's something that will be very important for me next season: trying to enjoy the tour as much as possible. Starting in Australia, in front of my home crowd, will be something incredible. Honestly, I can't wait," Popyrin assured Punto de Break.
