Stefanos Tsitsipas lost to Novak Djokovic in the second round of Wimbledon, 3-6, 4-6, 2-6.
The Greek has now lost in the first or second rounds of his last eight Grand Slam tournaments.
Tsitsipas, a two-time major finalist and former world number three, now sits 83rd in the ‘Live ATP Rankings’.
Give us your one crazy prediction for the second week of Wimbledon!
His former coach, Mark Philippoussis, has now reacted to his split from Apostolos Tsitsipas and suggested what he should do next to get his career back on track.
Mark Philippoussis advises Stefanos Tsitsipas to play Challenger Tour events like Andre Agassi did
During an interview with ‘SDNA‘, Philippoussis shared his thoughts on Tsitsipas’ decision to remove his father from his coaching team.
“I don’t know if this decision will help him, to be honest,” he said (translated from Greek).
“Seeing him, it’s clear that he’s struggling to find his confidence. This is also visible in the tennis he plays.
Stefanos Tsitsipas’ Grand Slam performance timeline (2017-2023)
| Grand Slam | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
| Australian Open | Q2 | 1R | SF | 3R | SF | SF | F |
| French Open | 1R | 2R | 4R | SF | F | 4R | QF |
| Wimbledon | 1R | 4R | 1R | – | 1R | 3R | 4R |
| US Open | Q3 | 2R | 1R | 3R | 3R | 1R | 2R |
Stefanos Tsitsipas’ Grand Slam performance timeline (2024-present)
| Grand Slam | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
| Australian Open | 4R | 1R | 2R |
| French Open | QF | 2R | 2R |
| Wimbledon | 2R | 1R | 2R |
| US Open | 1R | 2R | – |
“Whatever decisions he makes, he’ll make them himself. Whether they’re right or wrong, I don’t know. He makes the decisions, and that’s how it should be.
“I really wish him the best. But he needs to regain not only his confidence, but also his game. He’s fallen a lot, not only in the world rankings, but also in the level of his game and the way, in my opinion, he should be playing. I hope he finds that again and gets back to where he was.”
Stefanos Tsitsipas’ year-end rankings
- 2017 – 91st
- 2018 – 15th
- 2019 – 6th
- 2020 – 6th
- 2021 -4th
- 2022 – 4th
- 2023 – 6th
- 2024 – 11th
- 2025 – 36th
- 2026 (Live Ranking) – 83rd
However, Philippoussis, who coached Tsitsipas for several months in 2023, isn’t giving up on the 27-year-old.
“No, at 28 [actually 27] it is not too late,” he said.
“The most important thing is to stay healthy.
“In my opinion, it is not too late.
“However, he will need to do a lot of things to even approach the level he was at before. This is my personal opinion. We will see.
“The road back is long. But the most important thing is whether he still has the fighting spirit in his heart and mind.”
Philippoussis suggested Tsitsipas follow in Andre Agassi’s footsteps as he begins the long road back to the top of men’s tennis.
“When you are number three in the world, everything is going well. You are at the top of the table in almost every tournament, you travel on private planes, and everything is ideal. But when that stops, and you have to play in smaller tournaments, in front of fewer people, on smaller courts or on training courts where almost no one is watching you, do you have the determination to go through this process and fight?” he said.
“Andre [Agassi] did it. He went and played Challenger tournaments. He didn’t think he was above it. He had a plan, a vision of where he wanted to go, and he knew that this was the way to get back.
“Does Stefanos [Tsitsipas] have that vision, that competitiveness, that fighting spirit? That’s the big question.
“Does he have the will to do what it takes to get back? I don’t know. Only he can answer that.
“In the end, actions never lie, and neither do results. We’ll see.”
After falling out of the world’s top 100 in 1997, Agassi vowed to turn his career around and began playing Challenger Tour events.
He played smaller tournaments in Las Vegas and Burbank before returning to the ATP Tour level.
Having looked down and out, Agassi bounced back, winning a further five Grand Slam titles, and enjoyed another 69 weeks at world number one.
Tsitsipas isn’t quite the player Agassi was, but perhaps he, too, could benefit from a momentary step down to the Challenger level.
Which events could Stefanos Tsitsipas play next?
Tsitsipas has enjoyed the best results of his career on clay courts.
The Greek is a three-time Monte Carlo Masters champion and a former French Open finalist.
Therefore, it’s no surprise that Tsitsipas has already signed up for two ATP 250 events on clay later this month.
- Swiss Open
- Estoril Open
But rather than heading over to North America after Estoril, Tsitsipas might want to consider adding another clay-court event to his schedule.
The San Marino Open (Challenger 125) begins on the week beginning July 27.
Tsitsipas would be one of the highest-ranked players at the event, and would be in with a good chance of challenging for the title.
Surely that would make more sense than for Tsitsipas to rush over to the United States or Canada, where he has struggled over recent years.
It remains to be seen what Tsitsipas will do, but it’s certainly an idea worth considering.
