Stefanos Tsitsipas' mother Julia Apostoli made several big revelations during her appearance on a Greek talk show as she shared that her son used to be verbally and physically abused in school, while also addressing Stefanos' recent split with his father and the reunion with Paula Badosa.
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The Greek tennis star, who turned 26 last month, has been one of the best players in the game since having his breakout season in 2018. But before the two-time Grand Slam finalist became one of the best athletes from his country, he went through some very unpleasant situations during his puberty and teenage years.
According to his mom, he was "a very quiet and shy kid" - which made him an easy target for bullies.
"He was a very quiet child and very shy. Because of sports, he missed classes and the children he had in the class, cannot be called friends, because they treated him very badly. There were two or three kids in his class who sometimes beat him quite a bit. It was not easy for Stefanos then, but he overcame it because he had tennis and his mind was there to go forward. And that helped him a lot," Tsitsipas' mother said on Greek talk show To Proino.
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Julia Apostoli on the Tsitsipas family drama: They had conflicts...
During a shock Montreal Masters first-round loss to Kei Nishikori, the Greek tennis star unloaded on his father who was sitting in his player box. Shortly after it appeared that the 26-year-old wanted Apostolos to leave the court, exactly that happened.
Following the loss, the current world No. 12 ripped into his dad, describing him as "not very smart" when it comes to listening or in certain situations. And the very next day happened what many suspected would happen - he ended his long-term coaching partnership with his father.
Now, Tsitsipas' mother confirms that the relationship between the two was tarnished for years and suggested that it was a needed move.
"He is a professional and although he loves his father very much, he understands that he has to find another coach. Since 2020, when he lost in the US Open, we said with Apostolos that Stefanos needs to change his coach, but four years passed and Stefanos was bringing good results. I think that Apostolos and Stefanos did not have such a good relationship since then. They had conflicts and that's why Stefanos made the decision to change coaches. We don't see it as a tragedy. We are all together and we are a close family," she revealed.
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Tsitsipas' mom: I was on Badosa's side...
In early May, the tennis community was left stunned after Badosa announced through an Instagram Story that she and the Greek decided to go their separate ways after a year of dating. But just two weeks later, the two were spotted on a night out in Monte Carlo and that's when many started to speculate that they were back together as a couple. And Tsitsipas confirmed that himself when he and the Spaniard came to Paris for the French Open.
Now, the 26-year-old's mother has dropped a remark that appears to indicate that the split happened because of her son.
"Stefanos is happy, that's the most important thing. If he's happy, I'm happy too. There was a difficult time when they broke up, but now they're in love. I was on Paula's side. We talked and that's why they found each other again," Julia Apostoli shared.
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Meanwhile, the 11-time ATP champion didn't want people to guess what happened between him and Badosa and why they reunited so he decided to address it after arriving at Roland Garros.
We are together. Im going to explain why some people create different stories about us. Its not that I care, but I dont think people should take it like that. Paula didnt do anything wrong and neither did I. It was hard for us to be apart and I was also going through difficult times," Tsitsipas said in Paris.
I would say that I didnt take it very well either, because I felt the pressure of the tour, of my work. It seemed like a mountain to combine the two things (tennis and romantic life) and I made the decision to take a break. After two or three weeks I realized that she is a person who has supported me a lot and, when she tried to talk to me again, I felt how intense the love we have for each other is."
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When asked to comment on it herself, the Spanish tennis player simply said she agreed with everything that her boyfriend already said.
Meanwhile, Tsitsipas and Badosa played mixed doubles together at the US Open and lost in the first round to Santiago Gonzales and Giuliana Olmos.
