Stefanos Tsitsipas Announces Disheartening News After Successful Run at French Open 2020

Stefanos Tsitsipas revealed that his injury from the French Open 2020 semi-final against Novak Djokovic is slightly more serious than it had seemed. Tsitsipas was unable to move properly and was limping towards the end of the match.

While it originally looked like a bad case of cramping, it has led to his withdrawal from the St. Petersburg Open. Tsitsipas said he will soon prepare for the Erste Bank Open in Vienna that begins in two weeks’ time.

“Unfortunately, I’ve had a minor injury in my leg, but I’ve had an MRI and examined it thoroughly. Following my doctor’s feedback, I decided to withdraw from St. Petersburg, take a week off and prepare for Vienna,” Tsitsipas said in his statement.

Stefanos Tsitsipas aims to defend the ATP Finals title

“I look forward to playing there, in Paris, and in London,” the Greek star added. He added that he just recently found out about his qualification for the ATP Finals in London, in November. The Paris event he mentioned is the Rolex Paris Masters that starts later this month.

Tsitsipas’ top show at Roland Garros earned him a place at the ATP Finals, where he is the reigning champion. “I’m so pumped to have the opportunity to defend my title there,” Tsitsipas expressed.

The 22-year-old joins Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Dominic Thiem, Alexander Zverev, and Daniil Medvedev at the season-ending finale. Two more spots remain to be filled and nine players are in contention to do so.

Who can earn the final two spots in the ATP Finals?

The current favorites for those two spots are Diego Schwartzman and Matteo Berrettini. Schwartzman is in the midst of a purple patch after a final and semi-final appearance in Rome and Paris, respectively. The new world number eight sits on the 7th spot currently with 3,180 ranking points.

World number nine Berrettini is just behind him with 3,075 points. Andrey Rublev follows and is just 101 points behind the Italian. 11th-ranked Gael Monfils has 2,860 points and needs to find form soon if he is to challenge the others for a spot in the London finals.

In-form players such as Denis Shapovalov and Roberto Bautista Agut are the others who aim to better their recent performances and seal one of the prestigious spots at the ATP Finals. David Goffin, Pablo Carreno Busta, and Fabio Fognini are also in contention.

For Tsitsipas, his Roland Garros performance is a big boost, and it is now important to use the momentum heading into the business end of the season.