Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece celebrates after defeating Jiri Lehecka of the Czech Republic. Photo / AP
Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece celebrates after defeating Jiri Lehecka of the Czech Republic. Photo / AP
Greek World No. 4 Stefanos Tsitsipas is into the semi-finals of the Australian Open after pulling off a dominant 6-3 7-6 6-4 win over giant-killer Jiri Ledecka.
Ledecka had entered the tournament ranked No. 71 in the world but defeated 21st seed Borna Coric, 11th seed Cam Norrie and 6th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime on his way to the quarterfinals.
But Tsitsipas was way too strong, breezing through the match in straight sets to set up a mouth-watering clash against in-form Russian Karen Khachanov in the semi-finals.
The 24-year-old Greek star, who is looking to breakthrough for his first grand slam victory after falling short in the 2021 French Open final, has endeared himself to Aussie crowds at the event, and did so once again.
Earlier in the event, he used Aussie slang, then he said he’d buy a house in Australia when he retired.
And now Tsitsipas has his eyes on an Aussie treasure, Hollywood actress Margot Robbie.
In his on-court interview with Jim Courier, Tsitsipas praised the crowd and the support and said: “Australia is such a great country. I like of Aussie things, you know. One of my favourite actresses comes from Australia, Margot Robbie …”
Margot Robbie. Photo / Getty Images
Courier: “Margot Robbie? Are you pitching right now? Are you making an offer, what are we seeing here?”
Tsitsipas: “It would be nice to see her over there one day.”
Courier: “So you are officially extending an invitation to Margot Robbie. I just want to be crystal clear here.”
Tsitsipas: “Absolutely. But that is not it. That is not it.
“I like a lot of things in Australia, you know. The people are very welcoming. I have said that so many times, I will keep saying it because it is very true.
“I grew up in place that is very similar in terms of conditions and lifestyle and I find myself feeling home when I am here. It is not too tropical, not too humid and I very much feel like home.
“I know the French have the Roland Garros as their Grand Slam, the British have Wimbledon, the Americans have the US Open. For me the Australian Open is always going to be my home Grand Slam. I feel very much loved here.”
I mean, what better time to shoot your shot than when you’re just made an Australian Open semi-final?
However, trying not to get caught up in his promise to move to Australia, Tsitsipas did pledge to open a school in Victoria if he came away with the Australian Open title and its $2.975m in prizemoney.
“I have recently been putting a lot in when it comes to charity, and I would love one day hopefully, winning the Aussie Open and giving every portion of the prizemoney to build a school in Victoria, which is the state of education. I would like to do that,” Tsitsipas said.
“Let’s put tennis to the side because there are a lot more important things in life. I saw Victoria was the state of education and there is an idea for me over there that came to my mind and I saw how difficult it is for a lot of kids around the world to go to school and get proper education which is important, because, you know, not all kids grow up privileged.
“So I would really like to provide – give an opportunity to kids here in this state to build a school and provide them with free education and anything else.
“And to put it into words, that is what Australia means to me.”
