Name: Stefanos Tsitsipas
Nationality: Greek
Age: 20
Similar playing style to: Stan Wawrinka
At the start of 2018, most Tennis fans would not have heard about Stefanos Tsitsipas, now his name is being raved about by everyone. This kid is explosive, wild and a superstar in the making.
At this point, I usually look back on a players early career highlights, but until the 2017 European Open in Belgium, there was no signs that this man was going to be anything special. In this event, the Greek made his first ATP semi-final, including upsetting home favourite David Goffin, to claim his maiden win over a top 10 opponent. For that run, he became the first Greek player to be ranked in the top 100 of the ATP rankings. Tsitsipas closed out his 2017 season by reaching another Challenger final in Brest, but lost to Corentin Moutet.
The 2018 Barcelona Open was when a champion was born. His name, Stefanos Tsitsipas. Where did that sudden stardom come from? The standard he played at that tournament, was crazily good and unexpected. He reached his first ATP final without dropping a set, which featured a demolition of clay court specialist, Dominic Thiem. Unfortunately for him, the king of clay, Rafael Nadal, was awaiting him in the final. The Spaniard won very comfortably, but Tsitsipas was the talk of the tournament.
The 20 year old was seeded at 31 for Wimbledon. He took advantage of a favourable draw and really emerged as a star, on the very biggest stage. A Greek god marauding around the courts, playing extraordinary shots that were so enjoyable to watch. He was raw, but exciting. Tsitsipas reached the fourth round at just 19 years old, before being dumped out by big serving American, John Isner.
The form was no fluke, as he continued to light up the hard courts in America. After reaching the semi-final in Washington, the Greek reached his first career Masters final at the Canadian Open. If you didn’t know about him before this tournament, you certainly did after it. On route to the final, he recorded wins over Dominic Thiem, Novak Djokovic, Alexander Zverev and Kevin Anderson. His style was so unorthodox that players just couldn’t work him out, or more importantly, stop him. Stefanos was flying around the courts, hitting winners
from the crowd on either side. It was like watching Boris Becker all over again. Eventually, he met his match with Nadal, and he lost the final on his 20th birthday.
The hype was building, pundits were talking, and a big run was expected at the US Open. However, fellow young talent, Danil Medvedev shocked the Greek in round 2. Onto Stockholm Open, he became a champion. It was a matter of time. A good performance was enough to dispatch Fabio Fognini in the semi-final. Before Tsisipas produced a flawless, ruthless display to dominate Ernests Gulbis 6-4 6-4. This made him the first Greek to EVER win an ATP tournament. Hats off. Well deserved.
Big serve? Tick. Powerful forehand? Tick. A wand of a backhand? Tick. Entertaining? Tick. This guy is a freak.
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