Stefanos Tsitsipas makes controversial coach appointment after Goran Ivanisevic split

Stefanos Tsitsipas has controversially decided to reappoint his dad as his coach, having split with Novak Djokovic's former partner Goran Ivanisevic. The world No. 30 begins his Canadian Open in just a few hours' time against Christopher O'Connell and will have his father back in his coaching box.

Tsitsipas began working with Ivanisevic in May in an attempt to curb his downward slide in the ATP Tour rankings, but they parted ways last week in what the player described as a "brief but intense" partnership. He won a single match on grass this summer and retired while two sets down at Wimbledon to Valentin Royer.

After the withdrawal, Tsitsipas was torn apart live on TV by Ivanisevic on the SW19 balcony, despite still being employed as his coach at the time.

"He wants, but he doesn't do anything," Ivanisevic said as part of a brutal take-down to Serbian television. "All 'I want, I want', but I don't see that progress. I was shocked, I have never seen a more unprepared player in my life. With this knee, I am three times more fit than him. This is really bad."

Those comments preceded a separation, which led Tstistipas to reunite with his father, Apostolos, who himself had a messy ending to a previous spell coaching the 26-year-old.

Tsitsipas took to Instagram to explain the move, writing: "Some journeys have a way of circling back to where they began. After some time apart, I've reunited with the person who first believed in me-my father.

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"I'm grateful to share the court and the road ahead with him once again. We've been through ever chapter of this journey together, and this next one feels right. Sometimes, coming home is the boldest step forward."

Apostolos had coached his son throughout their career before being called out publicly by Stefanos, who later issued an apology.

Tsitsipas Jr has been open about how their father-son relationship had become strained due to having such an intense professional relationship also.

And the 2018 runner-up in Montreal said that he needs to be stricter with his dad in order to make a second stint work.

"It was a very difficult ending with him. He took me to a point last year where I honestly didn't recognise myself," he told Ziggo Sport.

"The way I reacted to this relationship, partnership over the last couple of years, and the way it ended was very obnoxious and unexpected that it would happen in that way.

"There are a lot of things I regret from it and a lot of things that I wouldn't want to repeat because my behaviour and reaction to it wasn't very mature or very me. He definitely made me lose control, but since then we've talked a lot and we've spent a lot of weeks together.

"I think I have to be strict with him, sometimes he wants to do things in his own way with me. Now I'm trying to recalibrate that and make him understand that certain things have to be done the way I want them to happen.

"I think this relationship deserves way more than the way we've been treating it in the past. I want there to be more wisdom, being smart in the way we communicate, and being entirely honest."