By Erik Gudris | @atntennis | Thursday, Might 29, 2025
Photograph credit score: ROLEX/Antoine Couvercelle
For Stefanos Tsitsipas, a brand new floor and a brand new coach could deliver a couple of summer time revival to his profession.
Tsitsipas, after dropping early at this yr’s Roland-Garros, is ready to start out taking path from former Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic forward of the grass courtroom swing.
Ivanisevic, 53, will be a part of Tsitsipas firstly of the upcoming Halle Open in Germany for a trial interval. Apostolos Tsitsipas, Stefanos’ father, who has been teaching his son lately, will no longer be part of the group, in accordance with Greek media outlet SDNA.
Stefanos Tsitsipas will begin working with Goran Ivanisevic subsequent week. https://t.co/HEXBWu3fCN
— Vicky Georgatou (@VGeorgatou) May 29, 2025
This afternoon, Tsitsipas confirmed the teaching partnership in a press release.
“Working with Goran is an thrilling alternative for me,” mentioned Tsitsipas. “He’s somebody who has reached the very best ranges of tennis, each as a participant and as a coach.
“I’m assured that his expertise will assist me develop additional and I’m actually trying ahead to that.”
Identified for his tactical acumen and candid teaching type, Ivanisevic has guided each Novak Djokovic and Marin Cilic to Grand Slam championships.
One of the deadly servers of his technology, Ivanisevic helped reconstruct Cilic’s serve sparking his run to the US Open championship.
“Stefanos is a really gifted tennis participant with a robust work ethic,” mentioned Ivanišević. “He has proven that he belongs among the many finest, and I’m comfortable to be a part of the following steps of his journey.
“My purpose is to allow him to thrive, constructing on the robust basis he has already laid.”
It’s been a troublesome few months for Tsitsipas, 26, who’s a former two-time main finalist and reached a profession excessive of World No. 3 again in 2021.
Regardless of reaching the quarterfinals lately at Monte-Carlo and Barcelona, Tsitsipas will now go away the world’s prime 20 for the primary time since 2018 after his second spherical lose in Paris to Italian qualifier Matteo Gigante. Tsitsipas, who dropped to No. 26 within the ATP Reside Rankings, didn’t survive the second spherical for the fourth consecutive Slam.
Earlier in Monte-Carlo, Tsitsipas refused to substantiate then that Ivanisevic would be a part of his group.
Tsitsipas, after the loss in Paris, spoke about his struggles to regain his successful kind from a couple of years in the past.
“It is a fixed puzzle,” Tsitsipas mentioned. “I am bold, and I need to show it on the tennis courtroom. Issues have undoubtedly modified during the last couple of years, and I do know that I discover myself in a totally totally different place now.”
Ivanisevic, who coached Novak Djokovic for over 5 years, lately ended his temporary teaching partnership with WTA star and former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina earlier this yr.
Each of Tsitsipas’ mother and father have been instrumental coaches in his growth, nonetheless some really feel his mother and father intervention has damage previous teaching relationships, together with one with former Wimbledon finalist Mark Philippoussis.
It is unlikely Corridor of Famer Ivanisevic may have an excessive amount of tolerance if Tsitsipas’ mother and father become involved as he walked away from Rybakina’s group when she introduced plans to reunite together with her former coach as a training advisor.
Among the many challenges Ivanisevic faces is rebuilding Tsitsipas’ confidence, attempting to unravel his backhand return points and serving to him impose his all-court abilities moderately than relying solely on his serve plus forehand mixture.
