Tsitsipas: 'I Want To Step It Up'
Despite losing his opening match at the Nitto ATP Finals on Monday evening, Stefanos Tsitsipas has no plans of going down at the season finale without a fight.
The Greek lost in straight sets against Andrey Rublev to fall to 0-1 in Green Group action. But the 2019 champion is keen to get back on court and turn his week around.
“I am excited. I still want to play good tennis,” Tsitsipas said. “Despite the loss today I feel I will get more chances. I want to step it up and play better tennis next time.”
Tsitsipas knows that even with a loss, he has a chance to battle back and give himself a shot at reaching the semi-finals. But to do so, the three-time Nitto ATP Finals competitor will need to get back on track against tournament debutant Casper Ruud on Wednesday.
“I know how the format and how everything works. I am pretty experienced here having played the event three times before,” Tsitsipas said. “The feeling of playing here never gets old. I am still as excited as I was the very first time.
“It is a format that most players are not familiar with because we don’t get to play it very often with round-robin rules and sets can be important. I like it because it gives me chances and I can improve and get better match by match.”
The fourth seed hit 12 aces and saved five of the seven break points he faced against Rublev. But it was not enough against the on-fire Russian.
Tsitsipas credited Rublev for his performance, as the Russian won 90 per cent of his first-serve points to get off to a good start. The fifth seed will next play five-time champion Novak Djokovic in a battle of undefeated players.
“I could have played better, but Andrey played really well. He served the best I have ever seen him serve,” Tsitsipas said. “I think in the first set he made something like 22 consecutive first serves. Maybe the stats are different, but that is the feeling I have, so he was pretty good on his side.”