"We're going to be fighting soon" - Stefanos Tsitsipas jokes about brothers Petros and Pavlos complicating matters for family's doubles ambitions
Stefanos Tsitsipas has joked that a 'fight' is imminent between himself and brothers Petros and Pavlos over choosing doubles partners for upcoming tournaments.
The 25-year-old paired up with Petros for the first time at the 2021 Australian Open. The duo were given a wildcard, but they lost in the first round. Since then, the siblings have featured as a doubles team across various ATP Tour events and Grand Slams.
Their greatest success came in 2023, when they won the men's doubles title at the European Open in Antwerp by defeating Ariel Behar and Adam Pavlasek in the final. Behar and Pavlasek clinched the first set 7-6(5) but the Greek brothers turned things around and won the next set 6-4, before wrapping up the match tiebreaker 10-8.
Tsitsipas, who is currently in Acapulco preparing for the Mexican Open, recently spoke about brother Pavlos (18), who is the youngest of the three brothers.
"He (Pavlos) is grinding on the ITF pro circuit. He is trying to make his way through. He is also a very good doubles player," he said (via Tennis TV; 02:55).
The ATP World No. 12 in singles went on to joke that the siblings would soon be fighting for doubles spots at upcoming tournaments.
"I think we're going to be fighting soon on who's going to play with whom," he said. "We're going to be three of us soon (on the ATP Tour) I believe. I hope for that and there's a lot of talent out there that has potential."
Stefanos Tsitsipas will face Roman Safiullin in the Round of 32 at the Mexican Open
Stefanos Tsitsipas is set to kickstart his Mexican Open campaign against Roman Safiullin in the Round of 32. The 25-year-old is seeded fifth at the ATP 500 event, while Safiullin is unseeded.
Tsitsipas and Safiullin have faced each other only once on the ATP tour so far. It was a quarterfinal clash at the 2022 Marseille Open, which the Russian won in straight sets.
The pair also played two matches at the Greece F11 and F10 events in 2014 and 2015, respectively. While Safiullin won the first encounter, Tsitsipas won their match the following year.
Tsitsipas started the 2024 season at the Australian Open, where his run was halted by Taylor Fritz in the fourth round. The Greek's next outing came at the recently-concluded Los Cabos Open.
Tsitsipas was the defending champion at Los Cabos and the second seed. The former World No. 3 reached the semifinals, but was ousted by fourth seed Casper Ruud, 6-4, 7-6(4).