Tsitsipas: “I hope Maria doesn’t take the defeat and elimination to heart”

The excellent relations he has with her Maria Sakkari confirmed – essentially – Stefanos Tsitsipas. The Greek tennis player spoke to Eurosport, commenting-analyzing Roland Garros so far and, among other things, he spoke about the defeat of his colleague by Muhova, which also meant her premature elimination from the French grand slam.

“It’s hard when you’ve worked so hard and spent so many days before a slam and working on the details, you have in your mind that everything will work out because you have it under control.

Maria’s opponent is a very good player, who is currently not where she should be. He always had the level to play very good tennis. I’ve seen her play, I’m impressed with the way she plays, she goes up to the net a lot, which we don’t see often in women’s tennis, she has a very classic clean game that’s nice to the eye. She has won big in the past, she has also won Maria again, she is not an easy opponent, she is a player who reads the ground very well. It opens up the field, has many weapons and many options. Especially for the first round in a Grand Slam we shouldn’t have a game like that”he said and continued:

“I hope Maria doesn’t take it to heart because she is also playing very well and is one of my favorite players on tour. I really enjoy watching her play and fight the way she does. This can happen to anyone, it has happened to me in the past. It’s hard to deal with because you can’t accept it many times and it hits you even harder.”



Tsitsipas also spoke about his opponent in the second round of the event, Roberto Carbages Baena.

“The player I played had a very different style to the player I played in the 1st round. I played a Spaniard who is not so dependent on his serve but is very patient in the way he builds the points. This made it more physically demanding for me. The hardest thing was that I felt at certain times that I was hitting the ball very hard and clear and he was behind the ball, with very good movement. He has done this thousands of times and has worked on his movement a lot. So I had to be more patient for 2-3 balls and not rush. That got better in the middle of the second set and I think by the third set I was close to perfection in the way I was building the points. I was seeing the field with a fresher eye. I also tired him a lot, I saw that in the third set his legs were not going. I felt that a little bit too, but I had run less so I knew it would be a mountain for him.”



Finally he mentioned…

“Sports fans bring a lot to the stadium, more than some might think. Playing without people spoils the atmosphere and I experienced this very strongly during the pandemic. Having your own people who appreciate your game and show it is very special and pushes you to play better. It gives you courage and strength. I have a feeling that here in Paris they like the way I play. They have given me a lot of love over the last few years. The Parisian Grand Slam has its own aura, it may not have the passionate Greeks of Melbourne, but it has its own flavor when you play on these courts.”