Stefanos Tsitsipas opened up on his latest coaching partnership in Indian Wells (Image: Getty)
appeared to take aim at his father as he made a subtle dig about his past coaches. For years, the world No. 9 famously had a tumultuous coaching relationship with his dad, Apostolos. But Tsitsipas finally
The Greek star has since started working with Dimitris Chatzinikolaou and their link-up has proven successful – Tsitsipas recently won his first ATP 500 title in Dubai and re-entered the world’s top 10. And he has now explained why Chatzinikolaou is a better fit than his past mentors.
Tsitsipas spent most of his career being coached by Apostolos. Whenever the 26-year-old brought in a new voice or decided to get rid of his dad altogether, they would ultimately always reunite.
Their partnership was often controversial. There were plenty of arguments back and forth between Tsitsipas and his box. The Greek star famously smashed a racket by his dad at the 2020 ATP Cup, and smacked a ball in the direction of his team at the 2022 ATP Finals.
Things finally came to a head in Canada last year when Tsitsipas lost his opening match and publicly , sharing his “disappointment”.
The world No. 9 apologised for his comments a day later, but he also decided to end their coaching work.
Tsitsipas soon hired Chatzinikolaou, and the pair are starting to see some huge results. After booking his spot in the round of 16 in Indian Wells, the Greek player opened up on their relationship and seemed to make a dig at his old coach.
Stefanos Tsitsipas ended his coaching partnership with his father Apostolos last August (Image: Getty)
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“Well, it’s a very honest relationship. There are no filters with Dimitris,” the 12-time title winner said of his work with Chatzinikolaou.
“I feel like we talk to each other openly and freely, and we can communicate excellently, and I think that’s what makes a good team when I can just communicate with him in the best possible ways.
“I can just talk to him and be precise about how I feel and what I can improve, things that we can consider for the future.”
Comparing Chatzinikolaou to his past mentors – of which there are few – Tsitsipas continued: “I feel like he’s very open-minded, like he listens.
“I have had a few coaches that, you know, I don’t feel like they are as open-minded and adjusting as fast.
“But what makes our relationship stand out is how we both feed each other feedback, meaning that I don’t pretend that I know everything, and Dimitris is humble enough to think that he’s not perfect either. I think that adds a lot to our relationship and makes us sort of work it out together.”
While Tsitsipas didn’t mention Apostolos directly, the world No. 9 recently as a result of their coaching partnership.
The 26-year-old appeared on the Tennis Insider Podcast, hosted by WTA star Caroline Garcia, and said: “I really want him to be my father because I feel like through our relationship in tennis, things have kind of gotten mixed up.
“And I’ve lost that value of the father that I want to have in my personal everyday life.”