Stefanos Tsitsipas' mother Yulia Salnikova says Novak Djokovic came back "as a different person" after taking "a miraculous" toilet break in the 2021 French Open final and admitted that she knew it was over for her son although he was up big.
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Playing in his first Grand Slam final, the Greek made an outstanding start and won the opening two sets 7-6 (6) 6-2 and it looked like the Serb had his back turned against the wall. Then, the now record 24-time Major winner left the court for several minutes.
When the match resumed, the situation on the court completely changed as Djokovic routinely went on to complete a 6-7 (6) 2-6 6-3 6-2 6-4 comeback. Afterward, some accused the 37-year-old of trying to "disrupt" Tsitsipas.
"When Novak went for a toilet break, which lasted, from my point of view, because we were sitting and waiting, an infinitely long time. But everything was according to the rules there, in fact. And when he came back, I already knew that Novak would win. He came back a different person. Yes, yes. How did this happen? A question for Novak," Salnikova said during a conversation for YouTube channel Mr.Tennis | Dychkovsky, via Championat.
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Even before the final, Djokovic used breaks in situations where he needed a reset and that led to some strong accusations against the Serb. Addressing that, Tsitsipas' mother didn't say anything directly but appeared to insinuate that there may be some truth in those claims that the former world No. 1 "fakes" breaks.
"Well, it's a miracle. It's a miracle. How do I feel about these theses that Djokovic often takes fake medical breaks? If this is allowed by the rules... Probably, if you play with your best friend somewhere on the lawn, not for money, but just like that, of course, it would be disrespectful. But here, excuse me, everything is according to the rules," Salnikovaadded.
When asked about his toilet break in his post-final press conference, Djokovic cheekily joked his "guardian angels" were there waiting to help him.
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Tsitsipas learned from that experience and started using it himself
A couple of months later, the Greek found himself in a tight US Open first-round battle against Andy Murray. Down by two sets to one, the world No. 11 managed to force a decider.
Then, he left the court for eight minutes to visit toilet. During the time the 26-year-old was out of the court, Murray was fuming and didn't hide that he was extremely annoyed by the lengthy break. When Tsitsipas returned, he broke the former three-time Grand Slam champion in the very first game of the fifth set. He went on to win the match 2-6 7-6 (7) 3-6 6-3 6-4.
Afterward, Murray said he "lost respect" for the Greek and also said pulling that off was "cheating."
Patrick Mouratoglou, who was working with Tsitsipas at the time, said the former world No. 3 needed some moments to "reset" and absolutely didn't intend to "disrupt" the Briton.
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When a player takes a toilet break, he takes a toilet break most of the time not because he needs the toilet but because it is a moment for him to reset and to refocus. Most of the time hes lost the set. He needs to calm down, be alone and be within himself to find himself a solution and that is the only thing that Stefanos does. Its even annoying to think that a player would only do that to disturb the rhythm of his opponent. When he did that (took a break) against Murray he just won a set. So why would he try to break the rhythm? Mouratoglou told Tennis Majors at the time.
In that same interview, the French coach noted that Tsitsipas learned a lesson from what Djokovic did in the 2021 French Open final.
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"When he lost his Roland Garros final he was two sets to love up. Djokovic took a toilet break, came back and then it was a different match. He learned from that. He didnt learn that Djokovic broke his rhythm. He found out that Djokovic took time for himself in the locker room and was able to reset and come back different. He learned that, tried it and it worked out for him. Thats why he continues to do it," Mouratoglou added.
In 2023 January, Tsitsipas made his second Major final at the Australian Open and the Serb was again his opponent. But this time, there wasn't much drama since the former world No. 1 sealed a straight-set win.
This year, Tsitsipas didn't have a great season and recently admitted that he will try to do some things to try to rediscover his joy and game ahead of 2025.
