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Former American pro Sam Querrey was left stunned by Goran Ivanisevic's remarks about Stefanos Tsitsipas following the Greek star's early exit from Wimbledon. The comments from the Croatian coach came at a time when rumors were swirling about Tsitsipas' reported breakup with girlfriend Paula Badosa.
Ivanisevic, who has coached Novak Djokovic and was recently a part of Elena Rybakina's entourage, joined Tsitsipas' team last month. At Wimbledon in the past week, the 24th-seeded Greek was down 3-6, 2-6, before retiring from his first-round match against Valentin Royer due to a flare-up of his lower back injury.
Later, the Croat slammed his player in an interview with SportsKlub.
"I’ve never seen such a poorly prepared player in my life! Me, at my age and with this bad knee, I’m three times in better shape than him. I'm not sure what he was doing in the previous 12 months, but his current shape is very poor," Ivanisevic said (via Tennis.com)
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Adding insult to injury were the recent rumors about his breakup with Badosa. The pair, fondly known as 'Tsitsidosa,' spent a lot of their time together on tour and are a fan favorite couple. Neither of the tennis stars has commented about these rumors yet.
Reading Ivanisevic's comments during a podcast episode, Sam Querrey said:
"You and your girl break up, and then your coach rips you, like, three days later. I was shocked. Goran's either getting fired tomorrow morning, or maybe this is like the spark, and he gets him back in the top 10. Because Tsitsipas has been playing like garbage for his standards."
Steve Johnson pointed out that Ivanisevic has spent years alongside Djokovic and knows exactly what top-level professionalism looks like. Querrey, however, was taken aback by the bluntness of Ivanisevic’s remarks.
Goran Ivanisevic urged Stefanos Tsitsipas to solve his issues outside of tennis
During his interview with SportsKlub, Goran Ivanisevic claimed that if Stefanos Tsitsipas solved the issues he has outside tennis, he could make a comeback into the Top 10.
"If he [Stefanos Tsitsipas] solves some things outside of tennis then he has a chance of being back where he belongs. He’s too good a player to be out of the Top 10. If not, then he has no chance," Ivanisevic said.
"My duty is to fix some technical things on the court, that’s the easiest thing. This other stuff, he has to fix on his own," he added.
It remains unclear what specific issue the 53-year-old coach was referring to. Recently, Tsitsipas relieved his father, Apostolos, from coaching duties and has been open about the challenges in their relationship. Additionally, speculation about a possible breakup with Paula Badosa has added to the uncertainty surrounding him.
Currently World No. 26, the 26-year-old Greek was in the Top 10 in February after winning the ATP 500 event in Dubai. However, he has gone 11-9 since and dropped out of the Top 25.
