Tennis Insider Makes Shocking Claim About Stefanos Tsitsipas’ Father Apostolos: “He Kills Him, Prevents Him from Breathing”

Stefanos Tsitsipas lost to Francisco Cerundolo in the first round of the Monte Carlo Masters.

Tennis Insider Makes Shocking Claim About Stefanos Tsitsipas’ Father Apostolos: “He Kills Him, Prevents Him from Breathing”

Apostolos Tsitsipas and Stefanos Tsitsipas (via Tennis Archive/X)

In Short
  • Stefanos Tsitsipas suffered a first-round defeat at the Monte-Carlo Masters, dropping to No. 64 in the rankings.
  • Tennis journalist Benoit Maylin criticized Tsitsipas for lacking confidence and compared his career trajectory to the Titanic.
  • Tsitsipas has had a tumultuous relationship with his father, Apostolos, who has been both a supportive and detrimental figure in his career.

Stefanos Tsitsipas was expected to make a deep run at the Monte-Carlo Masters, as he is a three-time champion of the tournament. But the Greek ace suffered a straight-set defeat at the hands of Argentinian ace Francisco Cerundolo in the first round.

Following his defeat, the former World No.3 dropped to the No.64 spot on the live rankings table. Benoit Maylin, a prominent tennis journalist, compared Tsitsipas to the Titanic. Maylin said on Sans Filet:

Tsitsipas is like the Titanic. We know he’s going to sink, and he is. It’s completely absurd that he’s dropped out of the top 60. And if there’s one tournament where we say, ‘Stefanos, give us back the glory days of your career,’ it’s Monte Carlo. Since 2022, he’s always been at least in the quarterfinals; he loves playing there, that’s where we see all his brilliance, but Tsitsipas isn’t there anymore.

Maylin said Tsitsipas doesn’t have any conviction in his abilities anymore and lacks self-confidence.

I don’t even see Tsitsipas anymore, or maybe it’s an alien that’s taken over his body. It’s not him. There’s no conviction; his head is always down, his shoulders are hunched. There’s no belief. It’s frightening. He’s completely sinking, and I don’t see how he’s not going to drown.

Benoit Maylin added

As a teenager, he had worked with Serena Williams‘ former coach, Patrick Mouratoglou. But it’s Tsitsipas’ father, Apostolos, who remained a constant figure in his coaching team despite multiple splits. Due to an altercation during the 2024 Canadian Open, Tsitsipas ended his professional relationship with Apostolos and hired Goran Ivanisevic.

But the partnership did not work. Both have publicly criticized each other several times, with Ivanisevic, while still in his team, calling him out for lacking match preparedness. Tsitsipas started working with his father once again.

He tried everything, the Ivanisevics, the Mouratoglous. His father saved him from drowning when he was little. He’s a living god to him. You don’t realize the depth of their relationship. But his father kills him, prevents him from breathing. It’s terrifying because we adore this player; he’s not old, he could still make it, but I don’t believe it. For me, he’s dead.

Benoit Maylin added

In Monte Carlo, the two-time Grand Slam finalist lifted titles in 2021 and defended them the following year. And after a quarterfinal exit in 2023, he emerged victorious in 2024. These are the only Masters 1000 titles he has won in his career so far.

Stefanos Tsitsipas responds to Goran Ivanisevic’s comment

Recently, during his interview with Sportklub, Goran Ivanisevic doubled down on his claim that Stefanos Tsitsipas lacks mental preparedness. Ivanisevic said he had urged his then pupil to take a four-month break after his Wimbledon exit.

Stefanos Tsitsipas Roland Garros French Open 2025
Stefanos Tsitsipas (Image via X/The Tennis Letter)

Tsitsipas reacted to these comments during his interview with The Times. He said that even though he was dealing with physical issues, Novak Djokovic‘s former coach continued to push him.

I hadn’t been practising properly for over two weeks. It was like he kicked me when I was already down.

Ivanisevic now works with Frenchman Arthur Fils and guided the youngster to the Qatar Open final, where he lost to Carlos Alcaraz. It was Fils who dismantled Tsitsipas 6-0, 6-1 in the third round of this year’s Miami Open.

Tsitsipas will next play the Barcelona Open, scheduled to start on April 13. The last time Tsitsipas won a title was at the 2025 Dubai Tennis Championships by defeating Felix Auger-Aliassime. The only time Tsitsipas played a quarterfinal this year was at the Qatar Open, losing the match to Andrey Rublev.

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