Jun 30, 2025; Wimbledon, UNITED KINGDOM; Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece during his match against Valentin Royer of France on day one at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.

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“Never Seen a Player in Worse Physical Condition”: Goran Ivanisevic Slams ‘Really Bad’ Stefanos Tsitsipas

Former coach of Novak Djokovic has been working with Tsitsipas since the 2025 grass season.

Jun 30, 2025; Wimbledon, UNITED KINGDOM; Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece during his match against Valentin Royer of France on day one at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.

Merely a month into his coaching stint with former World No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas, head coach Goran Ivanisevic has heavily criticised his player. The Croatian, a former Wimbledon champion in his own right, was left stunned as Tsitsipas crashed out in the opening round of the 2025 Wimbledon Championships. Now, he has openly laid out that the Greek starlet needs to make big changes inside and outside tennis to reform.

Stefanos Tsitsipas retires from his first round match against Valentin Royer down 6-3 6-2.

Dealing with a back injury.

Hopefully he’s able to get fully healthy for the hard court season.

🇬🇷❤️‍🩹 pic.twitter.com/5NkMbT9T9p
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) June 30, 2025

One of the talking points of this year’s SW19 campaign is the great fall of top seeds. Facing qualifier Valentin Royer in the Round of 128, Tsitsipas retired after losing the first two sets 3-6 2-6. A nagging back issue forced the 26-year-old out of the tournament – after which he admitted that he “didn’t know what to do” on court. To make matters worse, Ivanisevic has revealed that his protege is in terrible physical condition.

Ivanisevic Dishes Out Stinging Criticism Towards Tsitsipas: ‘I Don’t See the Effort’

Goran Ivanisevic spoke out against Stefanos Tistispas after a month of collaboration:

"He keeps saying 'I want, I want,' but I don't see any progress. I was shocked; I've never seen a player so poorly prepared in my life. With my knee, I'm three times better prepared than him." pic.twitter.com/Eb07CslyDm
— We Are Tennis (@WeAreTennis) July 4, 2025

Despite his shock defeat, Tsitsipas was positive about his relationship with new coach Ivanisevic. The alliance began for the 2025 grass court campaign, as the two-time Grand Slam finalist ‘looked to elevate his performance on one of the most prestigious surfaces in the sport,’ as per Iconico Talent. However, things have not gone to plan as Tsitsipas managed a solitary win (at the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle) in three matches on grass this year.

“If he solves problems outside of tennis, he will have an opportunity. He will return to where he should be, because he is too good a player to be outside the Top-10,” the 53-year-old veteran coach told SportKlub. The Croatian southpaw has mentored Grand Slam champions such as Novak Djokovic, Marin Cilic and Elena Rybakina in the past.

“He wants to [get back to the top], but doesn’t do anything. He just keeps saying, ‘I want I want,’ but I don’t see that effort. I was shocked; I have never seen a player in worse physical condition in my life. With this knee, I am fitter than him. This is really bad.”

Ivanisevic went on to talk about his growing equation with the Greek freak, and reiterated his trust in the process. Can he be the man to turn the season and career of Stefanos Tsitsipas around? Only time will tell.

(Image Credits: Susan Mullane, Imagn Images)

ATP

Goran Ivanisevic

Marin Cilic

Novak Djokovic

Stefanos Tsitsipas

Tennis

Wimbledon

Wimbledon 2025

Sankalp Harikrishnan

A passionate sports fan through and through, I am currently pursuing my MA in Global Sports Journalism. I specialise in tennis and football writing at The Playoffs News, and I have prior experience working at EssentiallySports and Sportskeeda. Born and raised in Bengaluru, India, sport was my safe space right from my childhood. After trying my hand at multiple sports and representing my educational institutions in cricket, badminton and table tennis, I found sports media to be my calling.