Stefanos Tsitsipas was surprised with the level of his performance during his quarter final match against Roberto Bautista Agut following his sensational win over Roger Federer in the fourth round on Sunday.
“I was a little surprised. You have a bigger picture of your opponent when he is going to come out. You think that he is going to do some extraordinary things. Roberto was playing great today. He played some good tennis the entire week”, said Tsitsipas in the press conference after his win over Roberto Bautista Agut.
The reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion admitted that it was difficult to sink in what he achieved against defending champion Federer.
“It was really tough. The first night was tough to process. In the beginning it was tough to fall asleep to be honest with you. I had pain in my toe which kept me awake. In general, I felt a bit of pain in my body and tension. The first night was tough. I slept less than six hours. I was worried about my next match, if I am going to be able to get some good sleep the day before. I wanted to concentrate on my next match. I knew that win against Federer was important, played a huge role in my image, like I am. I knew that the biggest challenge was today’s match, that I can prove myself once again. I am happy that I reached my goal, but that’s like the starting point to go deeper. That’s like the minimum. I would call it”.
Tsitsipas admitted that he was not aware of the dramatic impact of his recent results on the number of subscribers to his personal Youtube channel, which has doubled.
“Oh, my God, really ? I did not know it was going to have such a big impact. I didn’t check yet. I am not sure. I think I am going to be more careful what I am going to post on my next video. I am going to continue doing it. It does not change anything as a person. I am going to try to remain the same. It’s nice to be having those nice results, but it’s important to stay who you are, not think too much of yourself. I am going to continue making those videos. There is no pressure, not all all. I have no clue of what the reaction has been back home in Greece. The only thing I have seen is some posts, some magazine photos. I really want to know what it is back there, how it is back there. I received a lot of messages of support from home, which I have not replied to yet, otherwise it would take too much time. People seem to care. That’s a nice feeling”.
Posting videos on Youtube helped his professional tennis life and gives him satisfaction away from the court.
“I started posting my videos on Youtube. When I am desperate sometimes, when I feel down, I do these videos. I actually feel better. It makes me realize that tennis is not the most important thing in life, that we all have some other talents that we don’t know about. It makes me more relaxed. Film making and photography give me a better understanding and idea of life. There is a lot of things you can learn from that. It relaxes me. I see it as a hobby. Actually it’s a good hobby, because I can carry this stuff to all these locations that I visita round the world, create things.”.
Tsitsipas booked his spot in his first Grand Slam semifinal, where he will face 2009 Melbourne champion Rafael Nadal, who beat Frances Tiafoe in straight sets. Nadal beat Tsitsipas in both their head-to-head matches in two finals played last season in Barcelona and in Toronto.
“I played against Nadal once on clay in Barcelona and once on hard-court in Toronto. On clay it was a different story. I felt like I had no chance after losing 6-1 6-2 in Barcelona. I felt like he was on completely another level on clay that on hard court. I felt very close of beating himin Toronto, though the score was 6-2 7-6. I remember coming back to the locker room and promising to myself I am going to do much better against him next time. I felt like I understood a bit better what he was doing on the court after that match, and especially on hard court”
Tsitsipas grew up in a sports family and started playing tennis inspired by his parents Apostolos Tsitsipas and his mother Julia Salnikova, who was a tennis player. His grandfather Sergei Salnikov (father of Julia) won the Olympic gold medal in football in Melbourne 1956. Stefanos could follow in the footsteps of his grandfather by writing a new chapter in his family’s history in the Australian city.
“It’s very important to have both parents involved in tennis from a very young age. It’s good to have a family that’s so well connected with tennis, he has a good understanding of what’s going on. Many parents have no clue of what they should do for their kids. I feel lucky that I have such parents that know a lot about this game.
Tsitsipas frequently trains in France at the Mouratoglou Academy in Nice.
“Patrick brings me a lot of confidence in my game. He actually is not talking much, but whatever he says is so right and so on point that if I do that, most of the time he is actually right and it’s working. That’s kind of a skill, I would say, from people to be so direct and so right on what they are saying one time, not talking too much here and there, making you feel confused. That’s what I appreciate and admire about him”, said Tsitsipas.
