Stefanos Tsitsipas sheds light on the meaning behind his cryptic victory message at the Shanghai Masters
ATP
Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas kicked off his 2024 Shanghai Masters campaign with a victory over Kei Nishikori on Friday, but it was the message left by the former French Open finalist that left fans and viewers stumped.
The 10th seed recorded a 7-6(6) 6-4 win over his Japanese opponent in their opening round match, showing glimpses of the form that saw him break into the Top 5. Although Nishikori matched the Greek during the first set, the former World No.4 began to show signs of fatigue before Tsitsipas closed out the match in triumphant fashion.
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Tsitsipas leaves cryptic message on camera
Following his victory, Tsitsipas proceeded to write a few words on the camera as is the norm. However, the Athens native left fans and viewers stumped when he simply wrote the numbers '7784' on the camera lens.
This prompted several fans to ponder on the meaning of his message, as players traditionally sign the camera lens with a short thank you to the fans or a personalized message to a family member. With no resolution in sight, Tsitsipas took to social media to reveal the meaning behind his mysterious message.
"Signing with my Chinese nickname," he posted on Twitter, alongside a photo of him writing on the lens. The 26-year-old added: "(7784 is pronounced “qī-qī-bā-sì” in Mandarin!)".
Tsitsipas has been working with a new coach, Dimitris Chatzinikolau, after parting ways with his father as his coach. The former World No.3 has had a subpar summer, but claims to have set up a new goal; qualification for the ATP Finals in November.
"There is a lot of tennis to be played still," he said. "It all needs to come at the right time. I won't deny it, I might slip out of the ATP Finals in Turin, but my goal right now is trying to bounce back. There has been a little bit of an absence in terms of performance from my side and I want to recalibrate those great tennis moments I've had before and bring them back over the next few weeks."
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Growing up in a household where soccer was king, my earliest memories are filled with chants from packed stadiums and the rhythm of a ball being passed across neighborhood streets. But somewhere along the way, the quiet elegance and raw emotion of tennis pulled me in. What began as a curiosity became a lifelong passion; not just for the sport itself, but for the stories it tells: of grit, of heartbreak, of improbable comebacks and human resilience.
As a tennis writer, I bring the observational lens of someone who didn’t grow up in the sport, but fell in love with it as an outsider; a perspective that lets me see both its technical beauty and its emotional depth. Over the years working with TennisUpToDate, I’ve had the privilege of reaching more than 3.5 million readers worldwide, with one of my features ranking among the site’s top three articles.
With a background in storytelling and a creative mind always searching for meaning beyond the scoreboard, I aim to craft narratives that go deeper than results and rankings. Whether it’s a rising star breaking through or a veteran fighting off Father Time, I try to capture the heartbeat behind the headlines.
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