WATCH: Stefanos Tsitsipas booed by fans after retiring mid-match against Holger Rune at the 2023 ATP Finals

This was indeed a disappointing finish to a long season for Tsitsipas. 

WATCH: Stefanos Tsitsipas booed by fans after retiring mid-match against Holger Rune at the 2023 ATP Finals

Stefanos Tsitsipas and Holger Rune(L) and Stefanos Tsitsipas(R) (Image via @TennisTV/X and Gulf News)

World No. 6 Stefanos Tsitsipas retired from his second-round robin match at the Nitto ATP Finals against Holger Rune. The Greek tennis professional was having a troubling couple of months following his US Open second-round exit. This retirement will serve as yet another disappointment for the former World No. 3.

Stefanos Tsitsipas had a concerning couple of months after his US Open disappointment. He started the year with a runner-up finish at the Australian Open, where he lost the final to Novak Djokovic. 

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Barring the Australian Open campaign and his title-running win at the Los Cabos Open, the former World No. 3 has not had any other good finishes. Following his US Open exit, he fired coach Mark Philippoussis, hoping for a better performance. However, his game still seemed to be unsalvageable this year. While the Greek was playing his best tennis just a few months ago, it seems to have gone all downhill from there.

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This withdrawal automatically added a match win to Holger Rune’s roster. Following his three-set loss to Novak Djokovic, this was a much-needed success for the Dane.

However, following his retirement, he was booed by the audience for the same. The Greek was forced to retire after just 15 minutes on account of a back problem. He had called for a physiotherapist in court before announcing his withdrawal. This was truly a disappointing end to a long season for the former World No. 3.

However, this unfortunate incident brought fortune to Dane and Holger Rune. He was given the win after the withdrawal, giving him a 1-1 in the point table.

While his match against the Serb was truly exhaustive, with thrilling three sets, he was determined to get a better result at his next match. Fortunately for the Dane, this result was quite literally handed to him merely 15 minutes after the match began.

Holger Rune opens up about Stefanos Tsitsipas’ retirement

In the on-court interview after his win, Holger Rune had commented on the 2019 ATP Finals champion’s retirement. While the withdrawal came as good news for the Dane, he had sympathetic words to say regarding the same.

Holger Rune
Holger Rune (Image via: Open source)

Rune said: 

He wasn't fully serving anywhere near as full as he can. For sure something was up with him.

He speculated that his opponent was facing some difficulties in the match based on his serves. Unfortunately for the Greek tennis player, Rune’s prediction has come true. However, the Dane took a sympathetic tone as he hoped for a full recovery for his opponent. He further added: 

We play a long season and it is important to take care of the body. I wish him all the best.

In the final round-robin battle, Rune will face Jannik Sinner in a decider that will determine two of the final four of the tournament.

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