Stefanos Tsitsipas has been inspired by his girlfriend Paula Badosa (Image: Getty)
has given an insight into what he told during her epic run.
The Spanish star reached her maiden Grand Slam semi-final in Melbourne last month and returned to the top 10. It was a different story for Tsitsipas, who crashed out in the first round.
But the ATP No. 12 stuck around to motivate his girlfriend, even getting “strict” with her – and he’s now been inspired by her success.
Badosa has enjoyed an incredible comeback from injury over the last year. After ending her 2023 season with a back injury, she dropped out of the world’s top 100 last May.
But things started to click over the summer – Badosa won the Washington Open and reached the last eight at the US Open. She picked up where she left off in 2025, making it to the semi-final and returning to No. 10 in the world.
Tsitsipas was spotted in Badosa’s box throughout the tournament, and the Greek player has now explained how he rediscovered his own love for tennis by giving his girlfriend advice during her own run.
“With her run I thought, ‘If she can do it, why can’t I?’ That’s how I look at it,” the 26-year-old told the .
Stefanos Tsitsipas got off to a winning start in Rotterdam (Image: Getty)
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“I learned a lot from this process of how to get to a Grand Slam semi-final. I felt privileged that I could give her some small advice to help her en route to the semi-finals.
“She gave me the freedom to give some feedback and tips. Through my advice to her, I also learned things about myself in terms of tennis and how I see the court and how I approach my own game. It pushes me on.”
Tsitsipas wasn’t afraid to shy away from the difficult discussions during the . He added: “We had serious conversations during her run.
“I was being strict with her as I didn’t want to be too soft. Because in this sort of circumstance, she’s learned to play her own way.
“But I feel there’s so much potential in her that she can extract from her game and use that to spread even more of her tennis identity better inside the court.”
Tsitsipas is now hoping that Badosa’s efforts can motivate him at this week’s Rotterdam Open, where he is the sixth seed.
“It was inspiring to me to see her execute because it teaches me how to do things when I am in that position,” he explained.
“I feel she has a lot of respect for what I have to say. I’m really happy I have a relationship like this where I can exchange ideas and operate on a different scale than I usually operate at.”
It’s already paying off – Tsitsipas earned a convincing 6-1 7-5 victory over Harold Mayot in the first round on Monday.