Sawt Falasteen - 'It sucks': Tsitsipas first big name to fall at Australian Open

The 11th-seeded Greek, who played Novak Djokovic in the 2023 final at Melbourne Park, crashed out 7-5, 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 to American Alex Michelsen in the first round.

"The most frustrating part about losing in the first round of a Grand Slam is that you have way too much time to recover, and I would rather have the other way around where I don't have enough time to recover," he said.

"Honestly that's much, much better in terms of problem-solving.

"It just sucks in a way that I'll be hanging around for quite a while now before my next tournament comes in.

"With my competitive nature, I feel like these type of things are not really ideal for me."

Tsitsipas never looked comfortable against the 20-year-old, who had him running all over the court.

"I just tried to stay super composed out there today, I knew it was going to be a battle to the end," said the American, ranked 42, who scored his first win over a top-20 player at a Slam.

"My serve sort of let me down a bit in the fourth set, but super happy to get through it.

"It's all about the mindset. I came in with the proper mindset and I executed the game plan," he added.

Defeat compounded Tsitsipas's problems after a mediocre 2024 in which his ranking dropped to its current 12 from a career-high three.

He managed only one title, a repeat victory at Monte Carlo, and also suffered a first-round exit at the US Open.

Tsitsipas was hoping for a reset this year, but his season started badly when he was beaten in his opening match at the United Cup by 77th-ranked Alexander Shevchenko and he carried that form to Melbourne.

"It was a difficult first-round match. I knew I was dealing with a pretty serious opponent because I've played him before, and I have lost," he said.

"I had a very slow start. In terms of finding my movements and just dominating from the serve plus one, it wasn't really the way I'm expecting it to work.

"That led to some frustration and, let's say, insecurity in terms of approaching my game.

"I just hope I'm able to retrieve that back and use that as a strength within my game."

H.Nasr--SF-PST