Stefanos Tsitsipas reveals why he cried as he lived out his ‘biggest dream’
Stefanos Tsitsipas admitted he lived through his ‘biggest dream’ as he played a role in the farewell party that signalled the end of Roger Federer’s career.
Greek star Tsitsipas idolised Federer as he started his own tennis story and got a chance to play against the 20-time Grand Slam champion at the back end of his career.
Tsitsipas even managed to record a couple of wins against Federer after he broke into the upper echelons of the men’s game, but his admiration for the Swiss maestro never faded.
That reality was evident as he was present for Federer’s farewell night at the 02 Arena in London in September 2022, as he played his last match alongside his old rival Rafael Nadal in the Laver Cup.
The emotions flowed as Federer waved farewell to his adoring fans after his stunning career and Tsitsipas was at the heart of the celebrations as a member of the Team Europe team.
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Tsitsipas posted an image of him sleeping with one of Federer’s rackets after that farewell night in London and now he has spoken to Tennis365 about an occasion that meant so much to him.
“That was an amazing week,” Tsitsipas told Tennis365 at an Adidas event.
“I mean, that was an emotional week. I cried that night, first of all. I never imagined that I would cry for someone else, but not me in the tennis world.
“So I was really reflective that night of how my dream started, how I looked up to Roger. Then I was there when he was retiring. I knew. So it made me emotional.
“I felt for him and it still triggers me today. He’s my idol, obviously, and to see him go like this, it’s probably the biggest dream come true I could have ever asked for.”
We also asked Tsitipas if he still has the racket and he confirmed it is a possession he will never part with.
“Do I still have the racket? Of course I still have the racket,” he said with a smile. “I’m not selling for any price! This is a nostalgic possession.”
Tsitsipas also gave us his verdict on claims the standards at the top of the men’s game have risen since Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz started their own era of dominance.
Sinner and Alcaraz have shared the last seven Grand Slam titles, as they brought down the era of dominance led by Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
Tsitsipas is in a perfect position to judge whether Sinner and Alcaraz are playing at a higher level than Federer, Nadal and Djokovic as he has played all five players in their prime and he offered up an interesting response.
“I don’t think we can say Sinner and Alcaraz are better than Federer, Nadal and Djokovic until they win as many tournaments and that will take a long time,” he added. “What we can say is that the level from Jannik and Carlos is very high.
“It’s going to keep happening that we have new champions, new stars. It’s going to keep happening. It’s part of the circle of the game and how things work.
“I’m telling you, in the next five years, we’ll see more superstars enter the game and more players that have a different identity from those that are playing now.
“What we can also say is Roger, Rafa and Novak raised the standards and the number of titles they won will be hard to beat.”
Tsitsipas has suffered a slump in form in 2025 and recently split with coach Goran Ivanisevic after a brief and turbulent partnership.
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