The decision to invite Stefanos Tsitsipas to the Six Kings Slam in the absence of Jack Draper certainly caused a bit of intrigue.
It’s been a ridiculously poor 2025 for Tsitsipas, with the former world number three slipping to number 25 in the ATP rankings.
Tsitsipas has won 10 matches in either Grand Slam or ATP 1000 events all season, with him winning just twice in all four Grand Slams.
The season has been a nightmare for Tsitsipas, and that made his call-up to play in the Six Kings Slam all the more interesting, given that others were likely to offer more.
It was no surprise that Tsitsipas lost to Jannik Sinner in just 76 minutes in his first match at the tournament, collecting $1.5m for his efforts.
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Stefanos Tsitsipas’ decision should ring alarm bells with the ATP Tour
Shortly after playing Sinner in Saudi Arabia, Tsitsipas withdrew from the Vienna Open just hours before he was due to play Lorenzo Musetti.
Before the Six Kings Slam event, Tsitsipas withdrew from the Shanghai Masters too, making it awfully convenient that he was fit enough to play in the money-spinning exhibition.
It’s hard to knock players for taking the opportunity to earn ridiculous sums of money for playing a single tennis match, but it doesn’t reflect well on the ATP Tour.
It’s pretty shocking that he’s deemed himself not fit enough to play in two ATP events but has managed to strap himself up and head to Saudi Arabia to compete.
There is an argument that the ATP Tour bring this on themselves.
These days, there are so many tournaments across the year that some players feel inclined to knock events on the head to squeeze these exhibition-style competitions in.
Tsitsipas should end 2025 season
This simply can’t go on for Tsitsipas, and he’s running the risk of more damage if he keeps trying to get himself back to competitive tennis.
The Greek player has lost in two Grand Slam finals, and right now, he’s a million miles away from scaling those heights again.
At 27-years-old, Tsitsipas must take care of his body, and if he’s to give himself the best chance of a redemption arc in 2026, he must now call time on tennis for 2025.
Tsitsipas has achieved far too much in the game to be constantly picking up niggling problems, and right now, the best thing for him is a beach to rest ahead of next year.
It’s hard to knock Tsitsipas too much but his decision to play the Six Kings Slam either side of withdrawing from two events is not a good look.
It’s hard to suggest what the solution to the problem is but it would seem as though some players just aren’t bothered about a number of events currently in operation on the ATP Tour.
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