Stefanos Tsitsipas hinted that he is committed to ending the dominance of the still able old guard in the professional tennis category. The Greek believes the time has come for the next generation tennis players to start winning grand slams often.
The 21-year-old has already announced himself as one of the next great household names in tennis. He recently won the ATP Finals in London, where he enjoyed a fine run coupled with excellent performances.
However, the youngster understands that the stakes are still high for the “next-gen”. The current three best tennis players do not seem to be bowing out of the sport just yet. Like a fine wine, they are getting better as seasons come and go. At the moment, these three Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Federer boast of a total of 55 grand slam titles won. Despite having crossed the 30 years old mark, they are still going on strong winning the last 12 grand slams.
“It’s part of my goals next year, for sure to win a grand slam title. For it to happen, I will have to go through a lot of pain, a lot of struggle and a lot of hustle. I know I’m going to have to figure out things better than them,’ he told CNN.
Tsitsipas makes history in ATP finals in London
Despite going to the ATP Finals in London as a debutant, the Greek defied all odds to make a name for himself. He came out of the tournament as the youngest debutant champion of this season-ending showpiece ending the 41 years achievement by John McEnroe.
He is now focused on becoming the youngest grand slam champion in 2020 since Juan Martin del Petro, who overcame Roger Federer in 2009 to win the US Open.
The rise of Tsitsipas has caught the attention of Federer; there might be a change of guard pretty soon. However, the Swiss insisted that it will not be easy for the youngsters to get rid of the old regime.
When asked about the possibility of the “Next Gen” taking over in winning grand slams, he said, “Possibly. But then I look at the list of who finished world No.1, who has been world No.1 all these years, and it’s just crazy that it’s always one of us. But we are not getting any younger.”
Tsitsipas: Federer is my idol
The Greek has grown up idolizing Roger Federer, whom they have now faced off five times. He describes finding it a dream come true playing such players that he admired when growing up.
“For me, playing my idols, it’s insane, because once they used to be my idols and now, they are my rivals. It’s like a dream come true in away. It’s amazing,” he admitted.
Stefanos Tsitsipas’s ranking and performance in 2019
Ranked no.6, Stefanos played his last match on the 17th of November when he overcame Dominic Thiem 6-76 6-2 7-64 in the final in London to win his 4th career title.
This year the Greek has a 53-25 win-loss record. Stefanos conquered 3 titles in 2019 in Marseille, in Estoril and in London. Stefanos was the finalist in Dubai, in Madrid and in Beijing.
Novak Djokovic’s ranking and performance in 2019
Ranked no.2, Novak played his last match on the 14th of November when he lost to Roger Federer 6-4 6-3 in the R in London.
This year the Serbian has a 54-11 win-loss record. Djokovic has won 5 titles in 2019 at the Australian Open, in Madrid, in Wimbledon, in Tokyo and in Paris. The Serbian was the finalist in Rome.
Stefanos Tsitsipas and Novak Djokovic played each other 4 times. The head to head is 2-2.
The last time that they squared off, Novak Djokovic won 6-1 6-2 in the quarter in The Paris on the 01st November 2019.
Here the highlights.
Stefanos Tsitsipas and Novak Djokovic |
| Embed from Getty Images |
