“I didn’t want to do it,” Stefanos Tsitsipas speaks out against pressure of the ATP to play through injury at Indian Wells Open

Stefanos Tsitsipas meets Richard Gasquet in his opening round of the Miami Open


“I didn’t want to do it,” Stefanos Tsitsipas speaks out against pressure of the ATP to play through injury at Indian Wells Open

Stefanos Tsitsipas

Stefanos Tsitsipas has alleged that he was compelled to participate in the Indian Wells Masters tournament last week, despite his injury. Despite being in pain, the third-ranked player in the world lost his first match to Jordan Thompson. Tsitsipas has now recovered and is ready to compete at the 2023 Miami Open. However, he spoke candidly about the current status of his shoulder injury, which he sustained while playing at the Australian Open in January.

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Following a disappointing outing in Indian Wells, Tsitsipas is now back in action in Miami this week. Before the tournament, the Greek tennis star had already expressed his lack of confidence. He stated that he wouldn’t perform well or advance far in either of the Masters 1000 events scheduled for this month. The world No.3 suffered an injury ahead of the 2023 Mexican Open in Acapulco that made him opt out of the tournament.

Speaking ahead of his opening round, Tsitsipas said, “Playing without pain and being able to go out on court and show something different than what I did in Indian Wells. It was a tournament where I suffered a lot, it was not easy to be on court and in a way ‘I had to do it.’ I didn’t want to do it, actually. There are certain ATP rules that force you to play these big events, and I’m not a player who likes to retire or quit after a couple of games.”

However, he feels better now and is looking to win the title. His quest begins with the round of 64 tomorrow against Richard Gasquet. The French player won his first round in three sets 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 against another unseeded, Christopher O’Connell. Tsitsipas would like to change his fortunes and be prepared not to repeat the Indian Wells result here.

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Stefanos Tsitsipas updates about the injury before his opening round

Stefanos Tsitsipas
Stefanos Tsitsipas at the Miami Open

Before his first match at the 2023 Miami Open, Stefanos Tsitsipas projected a more confident attitude, stating in a recent Tennis TV interview that he has been diligently working on improving his physical fitness and currently feels better. Although he encountered some difficulties during training sessions, he remains optimistic about moving in the right direction.

Talking about his injury, the world No.3 said, “I am still in recovery and I won’t be pretending … that I have chances of doing well in these next two tournaments, because that would be wrong. I haven’t said it a lot of times in my career but I don’t think I will be capable of going deep.”

Fans and experts wish him a speedy recovery to be back fit and running as soon as possible. Tsitsipas voiced his aspiration to perform at his best in the upcoming days, but if not, he found solace in the fact that he has done everything in his power to prepare for the tournament.

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