Stefanos Tsitsipas’ Monte-Carlo Glory Takes Coco Gauff’s Coach 42 Years Back in Time to Connect an Emotional Tale

When Stefanos Tsitsipas won his third Monte Carlo Masters yesterday, the tennis community was pleasantly surprised. In 2023, his performance left much to be desired, with fans quickly losing faith in him. However, with his victory in the first clay Masters of the year, Tsitsipas is getting back into everyone’s good books again. Brad Gilbert, the coach of Coco Gauff, is one of the many individuals who praised him for being persistent despite whatever issues plagued him.

Tsitsipas not only impressed the tennis world, but he also fulfilled a promise he made when he fell out of the top 10. Coupled with his achievement, it gives more weight to Brad Gilbert’s words.

Before Monte-Carlo, no tennis follower likely believed that Tsitsipas stood a chance to win the tournament for a third time. Impressed by his show of tennis in the last week, Gilbert took to his ‘X’ page to say, “The beauty of tennis and sports, one ☝️ week can absolutely turn your confidence and year around, my Coach Chiv told me along time ago in 1982 every monday is the start of a new 52 week calendar ️ ranking, exactly why you put in the hard yards to be prepared for a good week to happen.”

Gilbert forged a connection between his own journey and that of Tsitsipas – despite naysayers going against you, a firm belief in your abilities and staying consistent is the answer.
Tsitsipas beat Alexander Zverev and Jannik Sinner on his way to the final and only dropped one set in the entire tournament, which happened against Casper Ruud in the final. Not only did he go home with glory and a handsome prize sum, but he has officially reentered the top 10 of the ATP. He jumped from rank 12 to rank 8.

Now, Tsitsipas will be looking to give an even better performance in the upcoming Barcelona Open, hoping to have a good run in the tournament, setting himself up for Madrid. His win in the Monte-Carlo Masters delighted those who love a shot, which many believed was slowly going out of the mainstream of tennis.

Tsitsipas brings ‘most beautiful shot’ back where it belongs
During a post-match presser at Indian Wells, Stefanos Tsitsipas was asked if he enjoys the nuances involved in the one-handed backhand. He said, “It’s a complex shot to master and to perfect, and it takes a lot of time to get to a point where you develop an amazing single-handed backhand. One that is a weapon, too.” He further added, “I feel like I am part of the players that carry on the legacy of the single-handed backhand.”

When he left the top 10, the one-handed backhand left as well, which created a big scare that it was going out of style. However, Grigor Dimitrov was there to save the day and brought it back to the top 10 after his fantastic run in the Miami Open. With his win in Monte Carlo, Tsitsipas became the second player to be in the top 10 with the shot, showing that there is still love for it.

The next goal for both players will be to take it into the top 5. Will they be able to achieve it anytime soon?