Stefanos Tsitsipas pokes fun at 'very selfish' Novak Djokovic after edging past Jordan Thompson at Australian Open

Published 17/01/2024 at 13:55 GMT

Stefanos Tsitsipas poked fun at Novak Djokovic after his mammoth four-set victory over Jordan Thompson to advance into the third round of the Australian Open. The Greek seventh seed dropped the opening set, but recovered to win the next three, including two tie-breaks. He said that it was down to Djokovic being "selfish" that he had not won the Australian Open title yet.

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Stefanos Tstisipas joked that the reason why he had has not yet lifted an Australian Open title was because Novak Djokovic was “a very selfish person”.

The Greek, a beaten finalist by Djokovic in Melbourne last year, advanced into the third round as he overcame home favourite Jordan Thompson in four sets on Margaret Court Arena.

The No. 7 seed fell a set behind after Thompson flew out of the blocks, fuelled by the raucous home support, but Tsitsipas grew into the encounter to close out the match 4-6 7-6(6) 6-2 7-6(4).

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Tsitsipas, who was also beaten by Djokovic in the final of the French Open in 2021, says the world No. 1 remains the obstacle standing in the way of him - or others - winning a maiden Grand Slam.

“Numbers don’t lie,” Tsitsipas said. “Novak has been able to win here 10 times, he’s a very selfish person!

"I think if he wakes up one day feeling less selfish, a ‘sharing is caring’ type of vibe...There are two scenarios: if someone is to beat Novak that isn’t me, or it has to be me. We have to find a way.”

Tsitsipas will face the unseeded Frenchman Luca van Assche in the next round, after he beat Lorenzo Musetti in four sets.

Tsitsipas was under his fair share of stress on Margaret Court, up against the determined Thompson in a high-octane affair.

Although it was a tight contest, Tsitsipas said he enjoyed the "intensity" and the "adrenaline and the rush".

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“At this very moment, I only remember the last point; the way it finished,” he told Eurosport’s John McEnroe in his on-court interview.

“The adrenaline and the rush that I got out of this match was insane. You live for these kinds of matches.

"The intensity was there today; we were both able to peak at some point during the match, and Jordan didn’t stop fighting. I was serving for the match, he had an incredible comeback, and a very unexpected return on one of my match points. A backhand right on the line. I was very surprised at that moment.

“I grew up playing on empty courts and I was always dreaming of playing on Rod Laver and Margaret Court Arena, and I’m glad that I was able to share this with you and make it a part of my journey.

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"I get my fair share of support; Jordan deserves his, he’s playing at his home Slam. It’s normal that he had the crowd on his side, and we were able to create an unbelievable atmosphere tonight.

“People were shouting from both ends, mine and Jordan’s, and the fact that I can go to sleep knowing that I gave my all tonight makes me extremely happy.

“I know that I’m capable of pulling off certain things and having a deep run at the Aussie Open, it’s one of my favourite tournaments. I used to skip school to watch it. It definitely means a lot to me. The whole climate, I feel like I’m back in Greece, the climate is very similar to where I come from.”

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