Stefanos Tsitsipas believes his best tennis is still ahead of him as he looks to bounce back from a challenging season that saw him drop outside the top 10 and part ways with his long-time coach and father.

Speaking exclusively to Wide World of Sports, the Greek tennis sensation expressed that he felt no pressure ahead of the Australian Open.

The former world No.3 faces a tough road to his first Grand Slam title, with a match-up against American Alex Michelsen in the first round. He is also placed in the same half as defending champion Jannik Sinner and is drawn to face Aussie hope Alex de Minaur in the fourth round.

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“Every single opponent I verse (sic) in the first round is going to be a good opponent especially how things have developed on the tennis circuit over the past couple of years,” Tsitsipas told Wide World of Sports during his appearance at the Wilson pop-up at the Emporium Melbourne.

“The draws are looking even harder than they did a couple of years ago.”

The 26-year-old will enter the Slam as world No.11 but is determined to change that.

“I have been training a lot of different things in my pre-season to try and be the best I could possibly be at the Australian Open,” Tsitsipas said.

“For me, it means a lot because it’s considered a home Slam and coming back here, I just want to extract (the) best from my tennis.”

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Tsitsipas wants to recreate the magic of his 2023 run at the AO, where he played in the final against Novak Djokovic.

He reached the semi-finals in 2018, 2021, and 2022, but was eliminated in the fourth round last year.

“I’ve had some really good years at Melbourne Park and especially the last three or four years,” Tsitsipas said.

“I’ve had some good runs where I fed on the adrenaline from the Greek community and also myself on the court doing my best to get great results.

“My goal is to replicate that and I want to get back to those moments where I came victorious and it would mean a lot to get into that position.”

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While Tsitsipas acknowledged his desire to win his first Grand Slam, he remained focused on his tennis, expressing confidence that the results would follow.

“I don’t know how things are going to evolve, but one thing I have control over is playing good tennis,” he said.

“With that in mind – I can go about it with no fear. I wish I could predict (winning a Slam) and lots of players want the same as I do and I have to out-compete them to get it.

“I am just outside of (top 10) and I don’t feel pressure. I don’t need to fixate on it too much.

“I need to be prepared for every single match and with that comes the success and glory you get from winning matches. That means you automatically will get back into the top 10 and I know the procedure, I have done it before – no pressure.”

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Despite any setbacks over the past year, Tsitsipas was all smiles when talking about playing in front of the Australian crowd at the AO.

He mentioned that it was one of his favourite places to play and expressed how great it was to see Australian Nick Kyrgios back on the court, despite their tricky relationship.

“It’s much better than last year, it’s good to see him back on the court and the crowd will love it,” the 26-year-old said.

“He is one of those guys who brings a lot of fun and entertainment onto the court and I think that’s something that Australians missed over the last couple of years.

“I (also) have the crowd by my side which I need and with that (I’ll) need to get out of the court and impose my fighting spirit which I always do.”

Tsitsipas is among the many players who have made appearances at the Wilson pop-up, which will remain open throughout the duration of the Australian Open.