Stefanos Tsitsipas blasted by new coach Goran Ivanisevic after first-round Wimbledon retirement - 'I'm three times fitter than him'

Stefanos Tsitsipas was on the end of a scathing rant from his new coach Goran Ivanisevic, with the Greek falling at the first round of a Grand Slam for the third time in four. The 26-year-old was forced to retire after losing two sets against French underdog Valentin Royer and said he was "battling many wars" post-defeat, before Ivanisevic's words.

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Stefanos Tsitsipas was blasted by coach Goran Ivanisevic after the Greek retired in his first-round match at Wimbledon.

The 24th seed was a surprise early casualty, going down 6-2 6-2 to world No. 113 Valentin Royer of France, before pulling out due to a back injury.

It was the 26-year-old's third first-round exit in the last four Grand Slams, while he has not got past the second round since reaching the French Open quarter-final over a year ago.

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And Tsitsipas' coach Ivanisevic, who the Greek hired at the end of May 2025, put his client's struggles down to "off-court issues".

"It’s both simple and not simple," Ivanisevic told outlet Sport Klub. "I’ve spoken to him several times.

"If he resolves certain off-court issues, he’ll have a chance to return to where he belongs, because he’s too good to be outside the top 10."

Former Wimbledon champion Ivanisevic, who suffered from serious knee injuries towards the end of his career, went on to offer a scathing assessment of Tsitsipas' struggles.

"He says he wants to [return to the top level], but he’s not doing anything. It’s always 'I want, I want,' but I don’t see any progress," added Ivanisevic.

"I was shocked; I’ve never seen a more unprepared player in my life. With this knee, I’m three times fitter than him. It’s really bad."

After his withdrawal on Monday, Tsitsipas revealed he had been "battling many wars" and was "left without answers".

"It's tough to describe. I'm battling many wars these days," Tsitsipas said following his retirement. "It's really painful to see myself in a situation like this.

"One thing that I absolutely hate doing is retiring or stopping a match, but I've never pictured myself being in a situation like this multiple times since the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin a couple of years back.

"Since that time, I've been very fragile with my body, and I've been battling a war of feeling healthy and feeling comfortable going to the extremes, which has been a difficult battle.

"So I really don't know. I feel like I'm left without answers. I don't know. I've tried everything. I've done an incredible job with my fitness.

"I've done an incredible job with my physiotherapy, so I've maximised on everything that I possibly can do. Right now I'm just absolutely left with no answers. I don't know what to do."

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