I don’t think I’ve seen Andy Murray play this well in a long time. Still, Tsitsipas, or Toiletsipas, beats Murray in five sets.
Why do call him Toiletsipas? Well, Tsitsipas‘ habit of going to the toilet at opportune moments in a match is catching some fame and heat. Alexander Zverev called it out the last time they played and he left the court with a bag and his father was then seen texting from the stands (hard to prove that he did text his father from the bathroom, but also difficult to prove otherwise). And yesterday, at the start of the fifth set, Tsitsipas left the court for about seven minutes, which angered Andy Murray.
“It’s not so much leaving the court. It’s the amount of time,” he said. “I spoke to my team before the match about it and said to expect that, prepare for it if things were not going his way. So I was trying to do that.
“But the issue is that you cannot stop the way that that affects you physically. When you’re playing a brutal match like that, you know, stopping for seven, eight minutes, you do cool down. You can prepare for it mentally as much as you like, but it’s the fact that it does affect you physically when you take a break that long, well, multiple times during the match.”
This toilet business is becoming a problem
Well, not the actual toilet business as such, but toilet breaks at key moments in the match. They are nothing new and you can’t stop a player from going to the bathroom. They have been happening on the WTA and ATP tour for a long time and there have been discussions about whether there needs to be some limitations or guidelines involved. For women’s tennis we have the additional issue of a player being on her period. But on both sides of the tour, it’s of course hard to understand what is going on with a player. They might have stomach issues or just the biggest bladder known to mankind.
Does Tsitsipas need seven minutes in the bathroom? It will take some rhythm out of the match for sure and Andy is right to criticize it. The question is how do you prevent or put guidelines around it?
Maybe Toiletsipas has a few ideas?
12 comments
Disgusting act of Stephanos. He was thought to be classy and elegant like Roger, but he is nothing with his horrendous on court anthics to win the game
Mr Murray and Zverev should talk to the people that make the rules.
Djokovic did the same when Tsitsipas was 2-0 (Roland Garros) and it ended 2-3. I did not see the same comment from Tsitsipas or youself Mr tennis nerd. Very disrespectful image.
Change the rules or just enjoy the game.
Tsitsipas performance was awful and I do not think that he will continue at US open if he continues like that. So, do not worry, you can see all the other respectful players competing.
We have to stop criticizing tennis players when they are acting within the rules. Fans are often so upset about medical time outs, underhand serves and sneak attacks that are all legal. If fans don’t like it have the ITF/ATP/WTA change the rules. Nobody criticizes any other sport for taking timely timeouts when the other team or player has momentum or using any other tactic within the rules to win. Tennis fans can be so annoying it’s the one thing I hate about the sport.
Hard question, but could start with not being able to bring your phone and other stuff to the bathroom. In Tsitsipas case compared to Djokovic it is clear that it is some kind of tactical dialogue his father going on.
Let’s not forget that Stefanos has a team. And decisions like this are taken far away before the match. Also we all remember that second thing at Ultimate Tennis Showdown that differs from actual tennis is the ability of speaking to coach (first one is score system). I think the words that player should speak with the coach and this toilet brakes are executed by Tsitsipas, Yes, but actually comes from one of the team member. And Tsitsipas will do everything is possible and legal to win the match. Maybe after the hate from fans he will change his tactics. Will be not 3 toilets brakes but two:)
how long does it take to walk to the bathroom from the court, pee, take off the wet clothes, dry off with a towel, put on dry clothes, and walk back to the court?
7 minutes sounds pretty fast to me…..
Don’t blame the players, blame the rules. Same in all sports. Djokovic is perhaps the biggest “offender “ there is, yet he is not breaking any rules. Tsitsipas is great and is a very classy player. The idea is to win by any means, within the rules.
However, for sure, the rules should be changed asap. They should also by the way shorten the time allowed for serving from 30 seconds to 20 seconds max. It is really annoying when Nadal and Djokovic take ages to serve. When the first serve is long or in the net, there is a 1 minute pause in the game. Tennis needs to adapt as otherwise its future appeal for TV audiences will suffer.
I have been watching you and your channel for a long time and it is true that you are doing a great job with racquets’ review. However, I have to say that I am extremely disappointed with your comments and how you disrespectfully change an athlete’s name to make a witty comment!!! I have been watching tennis since the 1980s and I can understand exactly how Sir Andy was feeling! He tries and plays with a destroyed hip! That is truly admirable, however someone needs to understand that it comes a time when you need to retire in the right moment in order to remain great! It s obvious that the guy cannot play a 5 sets match with a top 10 opponent! The momentum at that point of the match was with tsitsipas not with him!!!! He was loosing and he was moving not well on court! So he was more benefiting from the break than tsitsipas! He should have remained quiet and focused! But nooo, The whole drama in Andy’s mind was ok I m gonna do a little bit of drama on court shift the umpire on my side, the crowd should start cheering with me and against my opponent and I will break him!!!! That’s the true cheating!!! I admired Tsitsipas because he stayed focused and he didn’t even blinked when the disgusting crowd was clapping at his netting his first serve! Why Andy doesn’t get a penalty when he continuously talks and moans with his box during the game!! I m sure that’s annoying too!!! Should we be allowing this? He lost the match to a better player and athlete. Period! He needs to admit that and look at his retirement! There is nothing wrong to go home at the right moment, like Safin, Kuerten etc!! Man change that disrespectful title because it s damaging the whole work you have done so far!
Best wishes
Al
It’s a joke, I actually like Tsitsipas. But I think the toilet thing is something they need to consider in the rules.
Alec, I don’t know how long you’ve been watching the game, but go to YouTube and try and watch some of the Nadal/Djokovic 2012 Australian Open final. The match went close to 6 hours. 4 of those hours were probably the cumulative time they both spent between points. In fairness they were sweating buckets, but it was easily close to a minute in between each serve. The current rule change with the shot clock was a great compromise.
There is also a hilarious joke-video that someone made about Djokovic in particular, but it uses a Wimbledon match against Federer. Search for that one too.
Toiletsipas? You think this is funny?
If so where is your article on “Novak Toiletovic” and “Rafa Toiletal” (just to name two others who have done far worse in recent months and years)? There isn’t one. That means you’re being a hypocrite and a simple, run of the mill, good old fashioned hater. And by putting the world #3’s face in a toilet, and calling him names, you are only proving one thing to the world: your blog/channel (wtv this is) is the real toilet. Funny huh?
PS: I strongly recommend you apologize formally to your followers, admit you were being a hater, take down this nonsense, and go back to what you do best (making content without hate). We all make mistakes, it’s how we own up to them that matters.
I think his toilet breaks raise a valid discussion and that was just a natural headline. I actually like Tsitsipas as a player. I think your reaction is quite strong, but hey if you think my stuff is crap, that’s fine – no need to read it.