The 24-year-old Greek tennis sensation Stefanos Tsitsipas received a gruesome welcome to the grass-court major as he was made to work tirelessly in his first-round gentlemen’s singles win over Dominic Thiem on Wednesday at Wimbledon.
The world’s number 5 ranked player needed five sets to eke out a win over the Austrian 3-6, 7-6, 6-2, 6-7, 7-6 to advance to the second round of the grand slam tournament.
He will be up against two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray in the subsequent encounter as the Greek mounts his challenge in search of a first-ever grand slam title.
Perhaps, what is most interesting about Tsitsipas’ travel to the SW19 this year is the fact that the 24-year-old has entered the men’s singles competition in addition to the men’s doubles and mixed doubles events too.
Men’s Doubles
Stefanos Tsitsipas will team up with younger brother Petros Tsitsipas at the doubles event on the pristine WD grass as the sibling pair hope to get their hands on a first major together.
When queried about how it feels to be teaming up with his 22-year-old brother at the most prestigious tournaments in the tennis calendar, Stefanos recollected the struggles and challenges the siblings had to overcome en route to SW19.
“It’s a dream come true,” said the 24-year-old.
“We’ve been dreaming of stepping on this court since we were little kids,” he elucidated.
“We come from a little town in Athens, there wasn’t much given to us. We had to earn it. This moment is very special for us,” he said in an assertive tone filled with pride.
The Tsitsipas brothers get their shot at the men’s doubles title underway when they face off against the French duo of Luca Van Assche and Arthur Fils.
Mixed Doubles
The buck doesn’t stop with the men’s doubles or the gentlemen’s singles in the case of Tsitsipas, who will also be seen alongside his girlfriend Paula Badosa.
Currently ranked 35 in the WTA rankings, Spaniard Badosa reached a career-high singles ranking of world number 2 in the year 2022 and is a brilliant player in her own right.
The couple has hit the headlines in recent weeks after taking their relationship public and are preparing to mount a challenge for the mixed doubled title at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club this year.
TsitsiDosa, as the couple are fondly known, will start their challenge in the picture against the American duo of Austin Krajicek and Jessica Pegula on the 7th of July.
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