Stefanos Tsitsipas is set for the toughest test of his form yet as he takes on Daniil Medvedev for a spot in the last eight at the Shanghai Masters.
A slightly mixed run of fortunes for the 26-year-old Greek has been him slightly pick up his form in Shanghai.
Stefanos Tsitsipas overcame his Montreal conqueror Kei Nishikori in his opening match before seeing off Alexandre Muller in round three.
Stringing consecutive singles wins together for the first time since the Paris Olympics, Tsitsipas is hoping for a big performance in the next-round.
In a blockbuster fourth-round clash, the Greek meets Daniil Medvedev for the 14th time in his career, having most recently played in Vienna last year.
Stefanos Tsitsipas hopes for smooth end to 2024
Having pulled the rug from underneath his father’s feet at the Montreal Open when Tsitsipas finally sacked him as a coach, he’s not seen a massive surge in results.
However, with everyone agreeing this was the right decision, he is certainly remaining optimistic as the year comes to a close.
He said via Punto de break that he hopes for a far gentler end to 2024 as opposed to what he described as ‘traumatic’ last few months a year ago.
“All I ask for is to end the season injury-free; I don’t want any more unpredictable injuries. I’ve had them before; my last season ended in a very negative, almost traumatic way due to injuries.
“Some were severe, and it took me a long time to recover. I couldn’t even take time off because I spent most of it visiting doctors to fix my body. So, all I hope for is to stay injury-free for the rest of the season.
“Additionally, I’d like to achieve a good result in the Masters 1000. I’m not sure if that means winning or making it to the final, but I want something truly significant that will make me feel strong on the tour again.”
Can Stefanos Tsitsipas go far at the Shanghai Masters?
A difficult round of 16 tie for the Greek has him against Medvedev, who currently leads 9-4 in their head-to-head.
With the Russian have floundered at the Laver Cup picking up no points, he has since turned his game around and reached the semi-finals in Beijing, losing to Carlos Alcaraz.
If Tsitsipas is to topple Medvedev for the first time since 2022, he’ll need a good day and hope his opponent has a rocky one.
That said, with just one Masters event in Paris left for the season, Tsitsipas will know he needs a huge result at some point if he is to complete at least one of his aims.
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