Stefanos Tsitsipas’ 2026 Australian Open campaign was brief, as he was eliminated in the second round. He recently opened up about an injury that affected his performance at the Grand Slam tournament and contributed to his early exit.
In the lead-up to the Melbourne Major, Tsitsipas represented Greece at the 2026 United Cup. During the group stage matches, he secured victories against Japan’s Shintaro Mochizuki and Great Britain’s Billy Harris. In the quarterfinals, he triumphed over the United States’ Taylor Fritz.
Stefanos Tsitsipas Reveals Cause of Injury That Hampered His Australian Open Performance
Seeded 31st at the 2026 Australian Open, Tsitsipas began his campaign by defeating Mochizuki with a scoreline of 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 in the first round. He faced Tomáš Macháč in the second round and lost with a score of 4-6, 3-6, 6-7(5), 6-7(5).
During the fourth set of his match against Macháč, the former World No. 3 ran into the corner to retrieve a ball, grabbed his knee, and fell to the ground in visible pain. The physiotherapist attended to him, and he managed to complete the match.
In the post-match press conference, Tsitsipas spoke about his injury, revealing that he suffered a “stupid injury” while playing football just four days before the Australian Open began. He admitted that his team had advised him not to play, but he did not listen and ended up with one of the “worst and stupidest” injuries he has ever experienced before a tournament.
“I had a stupid injury here, playing football, four days before the start of the tournament. My whole team was pressuring me not to play. It’s one of the worst and stupidest injuries I’ve ever had before a tournament. It’s never happened to me before,” Tsitsipas said.
Tsitsipas explained that he tore his psoas muscle while juggling a ball. After the injury, he had difficulty walking for a couple of days and avoided running and lateral movements during training. He expressed that he has learned his lesson and will never play football before a competition again.
“I was juggling a ball when I tore my psoas muscle, turning to return the ball. It was a sudden movement; it’s never happened to me before. I had difficulty walking for two days. In training, I didn’t run, I avoided lateral movements. It’s the stupidest thing that’s ever happened to me before a tournament. I’ve learned my lesson: I’ll never play football before a competition again,” he added.
Tsitsipas achieved his best result at the Australian Open in 2023, where he reached the final and finished as the runner-up to Novak Djokovic.