Grand Slam title or world No. 1? Stefanos Tsitsipas reveals his preference as Mark Philippoussis rejoins his team
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Updated 03/08/2023 at 16:33 GMT
Winning a first Grand Slam title or getting to world No. 1? Stefanos Tsitsipas says he would choose the latter over landing a major. The current world No. 5 has reached two Grand Slam finals and had a shot at getting to the top of the rankings last year. He beat John Isner in his first match in Los Cabos this week, where he has started working again with coach Mark Philippoussis.
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Stefanos Tsitsipas has revealed why he would prefer reaching No. 1 in the world over winning a first Grand Slam title.
Tsitsipas, 24, has been around the top of the game for several years.
He’s made two Grand Slam finals – the 2021 French Open and 2023 Australian Open, losing to Novak Djokovic both times – and four other major semi-finals.
He has been as high as No. 3 in the world rankings and last summer had a shot at getting to No. 1 at the US Open.
He says he would “trade” winning a Grand Slam title to reach world No. 1.
“It is definitely something special,” the world No. 5 told El Universal Deportes.
“It is a sign that you have reached the maximum in your career and I like it when you are able to maximise everything.
“This way, one day I will be able to tell my grandchildren that I have been No. 1.”
Tsitsipas is currently 4,375 points behind world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz.
Tsitsipas is the No. 1 seed at this week’s Los Cabos Open.
He started his bid to win a first title in over a year with a straight-sets victory over John Isner.
Tsitsipas dropped just four points on his first serve and even fired down more aces than the big-serving American (eight vs seven).
“I have put a lot of effort into my attacking game, because my style is built around that and being aggressive,” he added.
“In addition, my serve is a great characteristic and I am working on my flexibility when it comes to making as many returns as possible on the court.
"I want to write my own little piece of history here, on this court. It's definitely a great destination for tennis.”
Tsitsipas has not lifted a trophy since June 2022 when he won in Mallorca.
He next faces Nicolas Jarry in Los Cabos.
Tsitsipas is believed to have .
The move could see Tsitsipas’ father Apostolos take a step back from coaching his son.
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Mark Philippoussis is working again with Stefanos Tsitsipas
Image credit: Getty Images
Speaking about his split with Philippoussis in May, Tsitsipas said: “It’s never easy having two coaches on the court.
“I know they are there to help and give the best they can, and provide for me, but sometimes it can get quite kind of hectic having two coaches share opinions.
“I’m at a phase of my career in life where I need one coach that can provide all the information, all the analysis, all of the things that I’m looking for to improve my game. Less is more, in my opinion.
“It is very important to stick with few people, in my opinion, and make that work, because when you have a lot of people around you, it can get very draining for your mental energy, too.”
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