Stefanos Tsitsipas has had a gradual rise amongst the elite group of tennis stars. He was one of the most promising next-gen stars during his teenage days. He reached a couple of ATP Masters 1000 finals and won some ATP 250 tournaments before his big breakthrough arrived. In his debut at the year-end ATP Finals in 2019, he defeated Dominic Thiem to clinch the title.
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Since then, he has gone on to win his first ATP 1000 Masters tournament in Monte-Carlo. Further, he also reached the finals of the French Open last year, losing to World Number 1 Novak Djokovic in the summit clash.
Recently, at the Open 13 Provence tournament in Marseille, France, the 23-year-old was quizzed with some questions. However, he had a surprising answer for a particular question that caught our attention.
Stefanos Tsitsipas believes Roger Federer is the GOAT of racket destruction
During an interview at the ATP 250 tournament in Marseille, the interviewer asked Tsitsipas who is the GOAT of racket destruction. He replied, “The most beautiful person that smashes racket, and he hasn’t done a lot in his career, but in terms of finesse when he does it, is Roger Federer. Like, no other player knows how to break a racket the way Roger does.”
Further, he added, “Miami against Djokovic, I think. That’s a clean hit. That’s a clean racket smash. And the throw at the end with the wrist to the bench, that’s like, that’s the way to top off the smash, like a cherry on the cake.”
Who's the GOAT of racket destruction? Stefanos Tsitsipas' answer from Marseille's Open 13 will surprise you! 👀 pic.twitter.com/QNxrSmntPj
— We Are Tennis (@WeAreTennis) February 18, 2022
Roger Federer’s racket smash in Miami
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Tsitsipas was referring to the Swiss maestro’s racket smash against Novak Djokovic in the semifinals of the ATP Masters 1000 in Miami. Federer started the match brightly, winning the first set 6-3.
However, the Serb came back strongly, winning the second set 6-2. Midway through the third set, Federer lost his cool and smashed his racket in fury. Subsequently, he flung it towards his seat.
Djokovic went on to win the match in an epic three-setter thriller. Further, Federer was issued a code violation for his actions.
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