Tsitsipas On Vlogging: ‘It’s Time To Step It Up’

Reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion Stefanos Tsitsipas has enjoyed a successful 2019, climbing from year-end No. 15 in the ATP Rankings to where he is now, a career-high No. 6. But tennis is not all the Greek is striving to improve in.

Tsitsipas, the top seed at this week’s Citi Open in Washington, D.C., wants to find another level off the court, too, specifically in his budding vlogging career. The 20-year-old is hiring a videographer to help with that, planning a six-episode season on his YouTube channel.

“I decided it is time to step it up,” Tsitsipas said. “I thought in order for me to be able to make it, because each season is supposedly going to take half a year to make, I thought it would be nice to have a videographer-photographer next to me who is going to help me film instead of me doing all that.”

Tsitsipas has long shown an interest in the camera equipment that professional videographers use. But the three-time ATP Tour champion knows that having great help by his side won’t be all that matters in creating a standout vlog.

“For sure, better content than gear. I don’t care about the gear. The gear helps me make great content, that’s why I spend so much money on it. But if the gear is amazing and the content is low, then what is the point of having such expensive camera equipment?” Tsitsipas wondered. “I always put priority on quality over quantity.”

A reporter asked Tsitsipas on Monday if he also has an interest in acting. And the right-hander was quick to praise some of his idols in that industry.

“I have a lot of aspirations and I’m a big fan of Robert de Niro, [Martin] Scorsese and his style. Leonardo DiCaprio also, and also Bradley Cooper,” Tsitsipas said. “The voice of Morgan Freeman, obviously. You’ve got to have that voice!”

Besides being the top-seeded player in the singles draw this week, Tsitsipas is also competing in doubles alongside Aussie Nick Kyrgios, creating one of the most interesting teams in the field. They begin their campaign on Monday evening against recent Wimbledon champions and top seeds Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah.

“He’s known for playing pretty good doubles and I thought having the opportunity to play a little bit before my singles also would help me get used to the conditions faster,” Tsitsipas said. “We do have probably an aggressive mindset on court. We both like to be aggressive and be in charge of the points. He likes to come to the net. It’s not his strongest point, but he feels comfortable doing it. His returns are pretty good. We’re both tall guys with good serves.

“I don’t know what to expect, to be honest. I’m really looking forward to it. I’m actually more excited [for this] than any other doubles match. I don’t know how he feels, but I’m sure we can play some good doubles.”