“One of the Slowest Courts”: Stefanos Tsitsipas Contradicts Novak Djokovic on Australian Open 2021 Surface

World No.6 Stefanos Tsitsipas recently defeated Thanasi Kokkinakis in the second round of the Australian Open 2021. The Greek player survived a tough battle at the Rod Laver Arena that boiled down to the final set. The final scoreline of the match was 6-7, 6-4, 6-1, 6-7, 6-4.

In the post-match interview, Tsitsipas said something that was shocking for almost everyone. The 22-year-old revealed that the surface at the Rod Laver Arena is very slow, which was quite surprising as many players have claimed that the courts are faster this year in Australia.

“I find Rod Laver may be one of the slowest courts out there, I think, yeah. Other courts feel quicker to me,” said Tsitsipas.

This was quite contradictory to what Novak Djokovic had said about the Rod Laver Arena. The World No.1 player highlighted that the court was really quick. However, Tsitsipas reiterated that the court was really slow for him.

“He (Thanasi) was serving pretty well. Gave me a hard time. Even though the court was slow, I had difficulties returning and bringing back his serve and lots of missed opportunities, breakpoints that I had. Yeah, he just managed it really well,” added the Greek player.

Read More: Who is Stefanos Tsitsipas’ father Apostolos Tsitsipas?

Stefanos Tsitsipas claims that the nature of the court doesn’t worry him

The World No.6 emphasized that although different courts have different speeds, the speed of the courts during the Grand Slams remains almost the same. He believes that it is a subject on which he doesn’t need to pay much attention.

“I think the speed of the court, it’s in most Grand Slams like this, not all courts are the same speed. It is how it is. I don’t really have to pay too much attention and detail on this,” concluded Tsitsipas.

It is surprising that Tsitsipas found the courts slower, while other players have had drastically different opinions. It’ll be intriguing to see how these things unfold in the near future.

Stefanos Tsitsipas will next face Mikael Ymer in the third round of the Australian Open 2021. Even though he faced some difficulty in the second round, he dug into his arsenal to eek out a victory.

Will Tsitsipas be able to win his maiden Grand Slam title in Melbourne this year?

Also Read: “Hell of a Day”: Stefanos Tsitsipas Battles Past World No. 267 Thanasi Kokkinakis at Australian Open 2021