Stefanos Tsitsipas told 'stop playing tennis' by his own fuming coach - 'He's a disaster'

Stefanos Tsitsipas has been told not to play tennis until he sorts out his problems on and off the court by coach Goran Ivanisevic. Tsitsipas' trip to Wimbledon this year was as disastrous as it was short-lived, with the two-time Grand Slam finalist and former world No.3 retiring after two sets of his first-round match against Valentin Royer.

Royer, who has never been ranked inside the men's top 100, dominated Tsitsipas 6-3 6-2 before the Greek waved the white flag and retired. His coach, Ivanisevic, had some choice words for him after the result. And with the dust now settled, he has let rip again in a brutal interview with CLAY.

Asked whether he had spoken to Tsitsipas after the Royer match, Ivanisevic said: "I told him not to play tennis right now. He needs to fix his back and get physically fit because physically he's a disaster. I can't understand how a player of his level can be so unfit. After that, he can think about playing tennis again."

Ivanisevic, who won Wimbledon in 1995 and went on to coach Novak Djokovic, has also stressed the importance of Tsitsipas tackling his problems away from the court.

The 26-year-old is rumoured to be going through a break-up with fellow tennis star Paula Badosa, with the pair reportedly calling time on a high-profile relationship which lasted over two years.

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"I didn't expect him to do well [at Wimbledon]," Ivanisevic continued. "His situation is clear: if he changes certain things on the court, and above all off the court, he'll be fine. But if he doesn't manage to change those things, then he doesn't have a chance.

"To be honest, tennis is the least of his problems. The other stuff is much bigger. I'm sure Stefanos is a top 10 player. He's played two Slam finals, won Masters titles, the ATP Finals.

"He's a great player! The only question is how much he wants it. I believe in him being between 5th and 10th [in the rankings]. But if he keeps going like this, no chance."

Tsitsipas was one of numerous big-name stars to fall in the early rounds of this year's Championships. Alexander Zverev, Holger Rune, Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Bublik and Lorenzo Musetti also failed to make it into round two during a Monday and Tuesday packed with upsets.