French-American tennis player Maxime Cressy recently highlighted that the difference between top players like Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev and the rest of the tennis circuit is mental strength.
Cressy reached the finals of the Melbourne Summer Set. This was his first-ever finals on tour but unfortunately, he lost to Rafael Nadal in the build up to th Australian Open. His exploits in the event saw him break into the top 100 ATP rankings.
Speaking after his final defeat Cressy pointed out the area he felt that he needs to improve. Cressy admitted that he has a long way to go before he can reach the level of top players like Tsitsipas and Zverev. He wants to learn the craft of keeping a level head during difficult situations.
“Playing these kind of players like Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev made me realize that they’re very stable mentally,” Cressy said. “And that’s one of the biggest differences that separated these guys from the other ones.”
The 24-year-old who met Tsitsipas in the US Open back in 2020 realized that he is not at their level. Cressy lost the match in straight sets after giving a tough fight in the first set. The World No. 75 credited Tsitsipas’ mental strength to overcome tough situations.
He highlighted how since that match he has worked a lot on improving his mental side of the game.
“When I started playing Tsitsipas a year and a half ago, I realized that I wasn’t at the same level,” Cressy said. “I realized that it was more mental than the level in itself. Now I’ve been mostly working on that.”
Cressy’s claims are not vague as Tsitsipas has been working on his mental strength since he was a kid. The Greek tennis player has been working with a psychologist to help him strengthen the mental side of things.
It will be a new experience for Maxime Cressy to fight it out against top players at the Australian Open. Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev will also look to fight for their maiden Grand Slam as they will feel competent enough to dethrone the likes of Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.
