Stefanos Tsitsipas hits "limit" after Wimbledon retirement: "There's no point to competing"

Former world No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas left fans concerned after telling press on Monday that there’s “no point to competing” in his current condition—revealing he’s hit his “limit” in a years-long battle with injury.

Tsitsipas, the No. 24 seed, was among the top players stunned on Day 1 of Wimbledon. Playing on Court 12 against French qualifier Valentin Royer, he trailed by a set when his chronic back issues flared up, again. After taking a medical timeout during the second set, Tsitsipas continued to compete despite clearly struggling with movement.

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When Royer took a 6-3, 6-2 lead, the Greek retired, handing the 24-year-old Frenchman his first tour-level victory and a spot in the Wimbledon second round.

“It's something that I've been dealing with for many years now, my lower left side back,” Tsitsipas told reporters at the All England Club. “It's exactly what Arthur Fils went through the last couple of weeks playing at (Roland Garros). I feel like it can be a very tricky injury.”

I've tried everything. I've done an incredible job with my fitness. I've done an incredible job with my physiotherapy, so I've maximized on everything that I possibly can do.

Right now I'm just absolutely left with no answers. I don't know what to do.

The loss is the latest blow for Tsitsipas, who arrived at Wimbledon armed with a new coach in former Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic—who previously worked with Novak Djokovic—and reported feeling physically fine in pre-tournament practice.

“I was playing good tennis. I was happy with the way I was playing,” he reflected. “I felt like I had a good chance at Wimbledon. I really don't know what can I say else. It's tough to wrap my head around what happened.”

It’s now been over a year since Tsitsipas last won back-to-back matches at a Grand Slam (2024 Roland Garros QF). Now ranked No. 26, the 26-year-old revealed that he’s running out of answers, and motivation, amid his struggles to recover and stay healthy.

“It's probably the most difficult situation that I've ever been faced with, because it's an ongoing issue that doesn't seem to be disappearing or fading off as much,” he explained. “Myself, as a person, I have a limit at some point, so I'll definitely have to have my final answer on whether I want to do stuff or not in the next couple of months.

“This is going to be hard, but if I see it going in that trajectory, there is no point at competing. I've talked about health so many times… If health is not there, then your whole tennis life becomes miserable.”

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Tsitsipas traced his injury back to the 2023 Nitto ATP Finals. He came into the tournament with burnout and carrying an injury, but hit the court in Turin after receiving the green light from doctors. He was forced to retire after just three games against Holger Rune—setting off the cycle he now finds himself stuck in.

As for potential surgical intervention? Tsitsipas has ruled it out: “No, surgery would definitely not be an option. The damage has been done already.”

For now, the Greek star’s future in tennis remains uncertain. Check out Monday’s Quote of the Day to hear it from Tsitsipas himself:

Q. Stefanos, can you just tell us what happened to you on court?

STEFANOS TSITSIPAS: It's tough to describe. I mean, I'm battling many wars these days. It's really painful to see myself in a situation like this.

One thing that I absolutely hate doing is retiring or stopping a match, but I've never pictured myself being in a situation like this multiple times since the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin a couple of years back.

Since that time, I've been very fragile with my body, and I've been battling a war of feeling healthy and feeling comfortable going to the extremes, which has been a difficult battle. So I really don't know.

I mean, I feel completely—I feel like I'm left without answers. I don't know. I've tried everything. I've done an incredible job with my fitness. I've done an incredible job with my physiotherapy, so I've maximized on everything that I possibly can do.

Right now I'm just absolutely left with no answers. I don't know what to do.