Juan Martin Del Potro has been defeated in the second round of the Rogers cup by Radek Stepanek of Czech Republic. The Argentinean star, who had won the Bronze medal in the London Olympics a few days ago, looked completely out of touch in the match. He looked tired and Stepanek defeated him easily. The Czech player won the match in the straight sets by 6-4, 7-6(5). He took 1 hour and 50 minutes to defeat Del Potro.
In the very first game of the match, Del Potro’s service was broken. Stepanek held his service in the next game to make the score 2-0. In the next five games, both the players held their service and at the end of the seventh game, the score was 4-3. Del Potro made the set interesting by breaking the service of Stepanek in the eighth game. Read more »
After beating Kei Nishikori of Japan in the Wimbledon championship this year, the tennis superstar of Argentina, Juan Martin Del Potro, has said that Nishikori is a super talented player and he is going to be a star in the coming years. As per Del Potro, it is very hard to play against Nishikori, especially on the grass court. As per Del Potro, it was necessary to put pressure on Nishikori right from the very beginning. So, he played with a lot of aggression and played his forehand very well.
This was the third match between Del Potro and Nishikori. These two have played against each other two times before. On both the occasions, Del Potro had beaten Nishikori and this was his third victory over Nishikori. As per Del Potro, when he had played against Nishikori previously, Nishikori hadn’t given him a tough time. But, this time around, Nishikori made him work very hard for his points. Nishikori said about Del Potro that it is very hard to disturb the balance of Del Potro, because he plays his groundstrokes amazingly well.
Dale Potro said that he has played most of his tennis on the courts of Argentina which are very hard in nature. So, for a player like him, who used to be playing on the hard courts, it is very hard to adapt to the grass courts. On being asked how well his knee is, Del Potro answered that he has almost got rid of his knee injury. On being asked about his chances in the London Olympics, the Argentinean said that he would love to win a medal in the London Olympics. But, at the same time, he said that it is going to be very hard as there would be some great players taking part in the London Olympics.
When Argentinean tennis player Juan Martin del Potro upset the then world number one Roger Federer to take the US Open title in 2009, becoming the first ever player to beat both Roger and Rafael Nadal in a Grand Slam, big things were expected of the then 20 year old with a stunning power shot.
Standing at 6 ft 6 inches, del Potro was the epitome of power play that modern tennis has come to be represented with but consistent struggles with injuries in the last three years has seen his career stall somewhat.
A wrist injury in 2010 ruled him out of most of the 2010 calendar season and he was unable to defend the US Open title that he had won the previous year, and the once number four ranked tennis player in the world slipped of the radar and almost disappeared into oblivion. Read more »
Del Potro is hopeful that his career can rescale the heights reached when he won the US Open in 2009 and thinks that Wimbledon could be the start of his true return to form. The Argentine has struggled with injury for a couple of years now, undergoing a major wrist operation in 2010.
He played just 2 matches in the next 22 months but finally returned to playing on a regular basis in 2011, even winning two minor tournaments. The pain associated with the wrist injury came and went during these encounters though, and at the top of the game the players must have absolute confidence in their fitness before producing their best – its just not possible to beat Nadal or Federer if you are busy thinking of whether your wrist will last the whole match.
However, after playing Nadal in last year’s Wimbledon Juan Martin Del Potro sensed that his time of injuries and pain was nearing its end. “It took a long time,” Del Potro said. “I’d been playing on clay and hard courts and I felt OK. At Wimbledon I said to myself: ‘OK, I’m not scared any more.’ After Wimbledon I felt like I had made my comeback.” After returning to full fitness he rocketed back up the rankings, taking 6 months to rise from 485th position to 20th but the climb from that position to the top ten was more difficult, and he now sits in 9th. “I was watching the top-20 players and they were playing at a high level, much better than me, and I didn’t know if I could get to that level,” said the Argentine. “But my coach, my friends and my family gave me confidence to work hard, to improve and after Wimbledon I said: ‘OK, I will be there. I don’t know when, but my game is starting to be dangerous for other players again’.”
In the French Open earlier this month, Del Potro put in his best run of performances for years, finally succumbing in the quarterfinals to Federer, but only after winning the first two sets and then suffering the recurring knee problem that has plagued him in the past. He remains ambitious, and dreams of the number one spot someday, but for the moment has a different objective. “Now I’m trying to find a way to win another Grand Slam,” he said, “maybe this year or next year, I don’t know.”
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August 20, 2012 10:13 am | 
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