Stefanos Tsitsipas ahead of Australian Open: ‘It’s my home Slam’ | ATP Tour

Match Preview

Tsitsipas ahead of Australian Open: ‘It’s my home Slam’

26-year-old hopes to draw on Greek support for Melbourne success

January 11, 2025

The feeling that Stefanos Tsitsipas gets when he arrives at the Australian Open each year is perhaps the reason for his consistent success at the first Grand Slam of the season.

The 26-year-old Greek is never short of support from his community when touching down in Melbourne. Having reached the semi-finals on three occasions and the final in 2023, Tsitsipas will look to draw on inspiration from the Greek contingent to forge another special run at this year’s Australian Open.

“Traveling so far overseas and having that feeling of home allows me to feel good within my comfort zone,” Tsitsipas said in his pre-tournament press conference. “I think that’s also why my tennis thrives and I feel better with my game. I can’t wait to start here in Australia, which I’ve talked about is my home Slam.

“The Greek fans, the Greek community in Melbourne makes a big difference in terms of feeling on court. Having that bit of an addition to my game where I know I get rewarded and I get really supported in difficult moments by fans in the crowd adds a little bit to my excitement.”

Tsitsipas finished his 2024 season as an alternate at the Nitto ATP Finals, where he won the title on debut in 2019. He is eager to boost his qualification hopes this year by starting well in Melbourne.

The No. 11 in the PIF ATP Rankings began his season representing Greece at the United Cup in Perth, notching a 1-1 record in singles, but now arrives at the major where he has performed most consistently since 2019. In that period, he has failed to reach the semi-final stage in just two outings (2020 3R, 2024 4R).

“I worked very hard [in the offseason] to get ready for Australia,” said Tsitsipas, who holds a 24-7 record at the Australian Open. “Overall very happy with the way I committed to the work, and my mentality seemed pretty good. I was in a good place. I was patient with the work.

“Obviously there was my fair share of suffering, too, which requires some physical work. This also means that I have to overcome some difficult moments during preseason such as fatigue and tiredness, [but] I did overcome it.”

You May Also Like: Food Court: From guilty pleasures to Greek delights, Tsitsipas and Sakkari indulge!

Tsitsipas will open his 2025 campaign against Alex Michelsen, who competed at the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF in December. The Greek rallied to a 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 victory in their only Lexus ATP Head2Head contest in Tokyo last September.

“I just hope my tennis blends in well with the rest of the crowd,” Tsitsipas added. “I hope I’m going to be able to really perform at my highest level and bring that tennis that I’ve shown in the last few years.”