'Just like Rafa Nadal' - Why 'unbelievable' Stefanos Tsitsipas is similar to legend at Australian Open - Wilander
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Updated 26/01/2022 at 09:30 GMT
"I think it’s the best Stefanos has played so far in this tournament," Mats Wilander said of Tsitsipas in the Cube after he overcame Jannik Sinner to reach the semi-finals of the Australian Open. "Tsitsipas played an amazing match to me, I was completely surprised. Stefanos is going to be a great ‘big-match’ player, he is always going to show up, just like Rafa Nadal."
'Tsitsipas was unbelievable - Sinner had no chance' - Wilander
Eurosport expert Mats Wilander has been left in awe of Stefanos Tsitsipas after the world No. 4 delivered arguably the performance of the tournament so far to defeat Jannik Sinner in straight sets.
Tsitsipas reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open with a stunning showing against the rising Italian star, and he closed out what was supposed to be a tough challenge in only two hours and six minutes.
The 23-year-old clinically converted all four of his break points as he raced his way into the last four, where he will play either Felix Auger-Aliassime or Daniil Medvedev, and Wilander could not have been more impressed.
"I think it’s the best Stefanos has played so far in this tournament," Wilander said in the Cube. "His tactics today were very clear from the beginning, and his ball-striking was perfect.
"Even though he faced a tricky situation when the roof was closed, he showed a lot of experience. I thought it was going to be a really close match – in fact, I was thinking Sinner had a really good chance, and he had no chance in my eyes.
"I think Stefanos’ game plan in every match is very similar, he is trying to take the ball as early as possible, take it on the rise, come forward. He was so aggressive, he took over 60% of his shots on the rise, which is just unbelievable.
"Tsitsipas played an amazing match to me, I was completely surprised. Stefanos is going to be a great ‘big-match’ player, he is always going to show up, just like Rafa Nadal.
"Yes, there will be a match when Rafa has not played well, but he is still a great ‘big-match’ player. So I think for Tsitsipas, it’s the same. Some days he is going to play bad and lose, but he is going to be there and he is going to try all of these different things.
"On all four surfaces, he is going to find different ways of changing things around. It is not easy, you have to beat him off the court because he is not going to roll over on his own."
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'Flawless performance' - Tsitsipas closes out 'magnificent' win over Sinner
Fellow Eurosport expert Tim Henman added: "Tsitsipas was so aggressive, he really wanted to dominate; he wanted to push Sinner back. Sometimes when Sinner is moving he is not quite as quick. He did a fantastic job.
"There has been a bit of talk about serving and volleying, but when you see these guys with such aggressive groundstrokes if they recognise when they get the opportunity that they can shorten the points and finish the point at the net.
"The good thing about Tsitsipas is, when he comes into the net, he has decent technique on his volley so he gets rewarded. The thing I like about Tsitsipas is that he has got options.
"There is Plan A, yes he is very aggressive from the baseline; he can serve and volley a bit for Plan B, and for Plan C he can finish the point coming from the back of the court. It makes him very exciting to watch."
As for Tsitsipas himself, he was delighted with his own performance as he targets another Grand Slam final, having made the showpiece at the French Open last year.
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'I proved him wrong' - Tsitsipas on being told he wouldn't make Australian Open
"I think my humility helped a lot today," he said on court afterwards. "I knew I was going on the court facing a very good player so I stayed intact. I tried to focus on my best shots and it paid off more than I thought.
"I'm very happy with the way I served today and the way I tried to come in and use my tactics a lot in today's match strategy."
Tsitsipas had elbow surgery during the off-season and is glad he could even play at the Australian Open after his doctor said he would not recover in time.
"I'm pretty sure my doctor is watching right now," he said. "He has been sending me texts after every single game. We both didn't expect me to participate in the Australian Open and it was not part of the plan.
"He certainly told me I don't see you playing in Australia. I proved him wrong!"
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'We'll see' - Tsitsipas on house rumours after win over Sinner
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