Stefanos Tsitsipas' mother remembers the harassment her son was subjected to as a child during the war

Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas is one of the most temperamental players on the tour and his mother, Julia Tsitsipas, revealed he was bullied a lot as a child and gave an insight into his upbringing. The world No. 12 has 11 ATP singles title defeats in his successful career, including three Masters 1000 titles. He has also finished runner-up in two Grand Slam tournaments, reaching a world No. 3 ranking in the process.

“Tsitsipas helped to overcome the bullying,” says Julia

Known for his occasional outbursts on the court and his withdrawn behaviour off it, the Greek star might be seen as aloof by some. However, Julia Tsitsipas revealed that her son was often bullied as a child but persevered due to his dedication to tennis: “He was a very quiet kid and very shy,” says Julia Tsitsipas. “Because of sport, he skipped classes and the kids he had in the class you can’t call him friends because they treated him very badly. It wasn’t easy for Stefanos at the time but he got over it because he had tennis and his mind to help him move forward and that helped him a lot.

The former French Open finalist is currently in Berlin for the 2024 Laver Cup, where he is part of the star-studded Team Europe. For Tsitsipas, this will be his fourth participation in the new event.