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Stefanos Tsitsipas has revealed he thought about ending his career because of debilitating back issues throughout the 2025 tennis year.

The 27-year-old, who has reached a career-high ranking of world number three, finished as runner-up against Novak Djokovic at both the 2021 French Open alongside the 2023 Australian Open.

Currently placed as the world's 36th best player following minimal competition since his early exit in New York in August, Tsitsipas indicated that ongoing treatment is finally showing encouraging progress.

"I'm most excited is to observe how my body responds during actual training with regard to my back," commented Tsitsipas.

"My primary worry centered on if I was able to finish a match," he added, explaining the pain plagued him "for the past half a year or more."

"I would wonder, 'Can I compete another contest without discomfort?'"

"It was genuinely scary following the loss in Flushing Meadows [to Germany's Daniel Altmaier]. I was unable to move for two days. That is the moment begin to question the path ahead."

Tsitsipas further mentioned satisfaction regarding the present treatment regimen following the completion of five weeks of pre-season training completely pain-free.

He is scheduled to compete for Greece at the team event, where they face Team Japan led by Osaka and the Great Britain squad captained by Raducanu. The tournament takes place in Perth and Sydney from 2 to 11 January, just before the season's first major.

"The greatest victory next season would be to not have concerns about finishing matches," he expressed.

"It provides fantastic feedback realizing you had an off-season without pain – I hope it continues. I want to deliver during the upcoming season and for the team championship.

"The effort is invested. The crucial element is total belief in my ability to get back to my previous level. I will attempt everything to make it happen."