Stefanos Tsitsipas' sad admission about father in shock Mark Philippoussis twist

Stefanos Tsitsipas has moved to explain his staggering decision to bring in Mark Philippoussis to replace his father as coach, just months after parting ways with the Aussie. Philippoussis announced in June that his working relationship with Tsitsipas was over after serving as one of the Greek star's coaches for a number of months.

But in a bizarre development, Tsitsipas has brought Philippoussis back in to be his head coach - replacing his father Apostolos. Speaking in his pre-tournament press conference at the Toronto Masters on Monday, Tsitsipas explained: "My father right now, I gave him some time off.

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"He hasn't had time off since I'm 12 years old. I think for him, it's very healthy to take some time away from the court and feel refreshed again."

Both of Tsitsipas' parents - father Apostolos and mother Julia - have been involved in ugly court-side incidents during Philippoussis's first tenure as assistant coach. Tsitsipas had been in career-best form with Philippoussis in his box, including making the final the Australian Open in January.

"Parents can get emotional sometimes, and I completely understand that," Tsitsipas said. "I'm not a parent myself, but I can imagine how difficult it can be at times seeing your child give it their all and to be going through so much during a match.

"I love him (my father) and I want him to be part of that journey that we have built together, and he's not going anywhere. He's still with us, and he's still there following our path and journey."

Tsitsipas hails 'incredible human being' Philippoussis

Philippousis was with Tsitsipas in Los Cabos last week when the 24-year-old beat Australian star Alex de Minaur in the final to claim his 10th ATP Tour title. "It's time to keep exploring new things," Tsitsipas said.

"And I'm open-minded and I want to learn as much as I can to maximise on my career because I have felt at times stagnant. Mark is a parent himself. He's not my father, but he's been through a lot of moments in his own personal career that he can identify and capture better in certain ways.

"He is an incredible human being. He has helped me a lot. He has been there for me. Even when people didn't see him around, he has been there behind closed doors in private. And he's a big addition to our team."

Speaking after his triumph in Los Cabos, Tsitsipas said: "I will take the positives out of this week. I had a few good matches here and I think it's a good start to the (American hardcourt) swing.

"We've experienced a lot of good tennis this week from a lot of good players. The competition was high, and I'm happy to walk away with the trophy."

with AAP

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