In 2019, Stefanos Tsitsipas enjoyed a breakthrough year in professional tennis.
The season after his first full trip around the ATP Tour in 2018, the Greek star won three titles, the joint-most he has ever claimed in a calendar year.
Tsitsipas emerged victorious in Marseille and Estoril before putting together a phenomenal run at the ATP Finals to hoist the trophy.
Earlier that season, he also reached the semifinals of the Australian Open and overcame Roger Federer in four sets en route.
Just 20 years old at the time, he came back from a set down to beat the Swiss legend and put an end to his pursuit of a three-peat, in a match that tennis legend John McEnroe considered to be a ‘changing of the guard’.
Roger Federer’s response to John McEnroe’s claim about Stefanos Tsitsipas
When made aware of McEnroe’s comments in his post-defeat press conference that day, Federer was not convinced.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion responded: “Yeah, sure. He’s in front of the mic a lot. He’s always going to say stuff.
Serena Williams picked Roger Federer as the G.O.A.T.
“I love John. I’ve heard that story [for] the last 10 years. From that standpoint, nothing new there.”
Asked if he saw any similarities in Tsitsipas’ game compared to his own, Federer said: “I mean, I guess so. He has a one-handed backhand, and I used to have long hair, too. Yeah, so maybe a little bit, sure.”
In the years that followed, Tsitsipas managed to hit a number of impressive milestones, and, for a while, it did look as though he would be the man to headline the next generation.
- April 2021 – First ATP Masters 1000 title
- June 2021 – First Grand Slam final at Roland Garros
- August 2021 – Career-high ranking of world number three
- January 2023 – Second Grand Slam final at the Australian Open
However, in the last two seasons, McEnroe’s 2019 claim has not looked too great at all, with Tsitsipas having struggled to go far on the biggest stages.
He did add another Monte-Carlo Masters crown to his collection in 2024, but at Grand Slams, Tsitsipas has failed to make it past the quarterfinals over the last couple of seasons.
This year, Tsitsipas recorded one of the worst seasons of his career, and his ranking has plummeted to 34th in the world; a position that will see him unseeded at the Australian Open in January.
Though he has endured an ongoing back injury, along with a number of coaching changes, Tsitsipas has been a shell of his former self over the last 12 months, and, at the moment, has minimal chance of emulating even half of Federer’s success.
Stefanos Tsitsipas’ response to the ‘changing of the guard’ comment
Tsitsipas was much more reserved than McEnroe after his victory over Federer.
Responding to the American’s ‘changing of the guard’ comment, he said: “I mean, I try to take every match differently.
“For sure it’s a good win against Roger. I mean, we all know who Roger Federer is, what he has done in tennis.
Which tennis player am I thinking of?
“But I still have to keep my focus, keep my concentration on further goals that I want to achieve. That’s a very good beginning. I need to stay humble.
“This win is a good milestone, let’s say good first step, as I said, to something bigger. I do feel like my game is pretty good at the moment. I feel confident. That’s very important.
“I’m really pumped and excited to be competing in the quarterfinals two days from now. I’m really waiting for that moment.”
Federer won his next clash with Tsitsipas in straight sets, beating him in the Dubai Tennis Championships later that season.
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