Stefanos Tsitsipas’ first ATP Masters 1000 campaign of the season in Indian Wells came to an abrupt end in the first round.
The former world number three suffered his sixth singles loss of the season against Denis Shapovalov, falling in three sets, 2-6, 6-3, 4-6.
Tsitsipas, currently 43rd in the world, was not seeded for the Indian Wells Open, following a large drop in the ATP rankings due to a disappointing and injury-ridden 2025 season.
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Though he has been able to stay healthy so far in 2026, the Greek has failed to make a deep run at any of the six tournaments he has appeared in.
After another early exit in Indian Wells, former American player Steve Johnson gave a brutally honest assessment of Tsitsipas’ game right now.
Steve Johnson reacts to Stefanos Tsitsipas’ loss in Indian Wells
Speaking on the ‘Nothing Major‘ podcast, Johnson said: “It feels like he’s lost some miles per hour on his ground strokes and his game.
“Like, he’s not hitting the ball as big. He’s not hitting it as heavy. So guys are getting more of a chance to go and attack it. And he just feels like he’s on the defence.
“He’s not hitting the ball that cleanly. So the backhand is kind of spinny, and it’s just kind of sitting in the middle of the court, and his movement was never, I wouldn’t say it was like world-class.
‘I mean, he’s, he’s a good mover, but now that he’s struggling with his pace and not getting guys kind of on the move on his own terms, him playing defence is not a recipe for success long-term.
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“So I don’t know if he needs a new coach, if you know, the dad’s back. It’s a complicated situation for him off the court with his whole coaching team and whatnot.
“I don’t know what the answer is. I would, I would start throwing things at the wall and seeing what sticks, quite frankly, and just hiring new people and seeing what I can get.
“Because he’s still not old, he’s still [in his] late twenties. He still has time, but it seems like it’s going the wrong direction.
“It has been for the better part of two years now. And he’s at the risk of not being in the main draw of the Masters 1000 series.”
Stefanos Tsitsipas’ results so far this season
Tsitsipas got off to a promising start in 2026 when he won all three of his matches for Team Greece at the United Cup.
Things quickly went south for the 27-year-old, though, when he suffered a first-round exit at the Adelaide International before bowing out of the Australian Open in round two.
Then, Tsitsipas picked up a pair of wins for Greece at the Davis Cup in their tie with Mexico.
Following another early exit in Rotterdam, Tsitsipas enjoyed his best tournament run of the season at the Qatar Open, where he made the quarterfinals.
He lost to Andrey Rublev in the Doha last eight, and ended his Middle East swing with a first-round defeat in Dubai.
After crashing out early again in Indian Wells, Tsitsipas will set his sights on the Miami Open.
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