Goran Ivanisevic breaks silence on Stefanos Tsitsipas split after brutal putdown

Goran Ivanisevic has spoken out after his blockbuster coaching partnership with Stefanos Tsitsipas came to an end after less than two months. The retired former Wimbledon champion joined the Greek star's team ahead of the grass season and was with him for just two tournaments. During their stint together, Ivanisevic brutally called Tsitsipas out on TV.

The world No. 29 announced earlier this week that their coaching partnership had ended, and Tsitsipas will now return to working with his father, Apostolos. Ivanisevic has now suggested that Tsitsipas' dad is the only one who can coach him, and addressed his scathing public comments.

"We spoke yesterday, to end this saga. We had a nice chat, it's something that's been going on for the last ten days, there's no bad blood, we thanked each other," the retired Croatian player told HRT.

"He decided to try again with his father. I honestly, most sincerely mean this, the only person who can coach him is his dad. He played the best tennis with him, he knows him best, it's a family project.

"It's the best decision, I wish him all the best, he's too good a player to be where he is. And yesterday I told him that nothing will change if he doesn't sort out some things in his head himself."

Ivanisevic aired similar views just a few weeks ago during Wimbledon after Tsitsipas retired from his opening match with an injury. He was criticised for publicly shaming his own player on TV, but the former world No. 2 stands by his comments.

He added: "It was exaggerated, and I didn't insult him... I told him all that, it's not like I said it behind his back. Now it turns out that you're not even allowed to say anything anymore. I said it honestly, to create an effect. That's the way it is.

"Unfortunately, that's how it is, everyone sees it. He feels it himself, and he knows it. If you're not mentally, physically, mentally ready. Especially mentally, to play a few hours with the best, then you have no chance of playing tennis.

"Mentally, he simply wasn't ready to play at Wimbledon, I hope he manages to find that path. I wish him all the best, we know what results he had, he didn't forget to play tennis."

Before heading to Wimbledon, Tsitsipas gave a glowing review of his partnership with Ivanisevic in its early stages and liked that the Croatian was tough on him. But it appears that it quickly became an issue.

Speaking live on earlier this month, Ivanisevic said: "It's simple and it's not simple. I've talked to him a lot of times. If he solves some things outside of tennis, then he has a chance and he'll return to where he belongs, because he's too good a player to be out of the top 10."

Ivanisevic also suggested Tsitsipas' fitness was an issue and added: "With this knee, I am three times more fit than him. This is really bad."

Tsitsipas will return to competition at the upcoming Masters 1000 in Canada. He fired his dad as his coach at the same tournament last year, but the pair have reunited again after his split from Ivanisevic.

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