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.”
Argentinean danger man Juan Martin Del Potro was able to overcome a knee injury during his opening round victory which was played in temperatures above 30 degrees to secure his place in the second round of the French Open. The twenty three year old who is currently ranked at 185 in the world saw off the experienced Spanish Albert Montnes in a four set match
The ex world number four and 2009 US Open winner looked in good form as he progresses to the second round where he faces Edouard Roger-Vasselin who will be playing with home crowd support in France. After dropping out of the international men’s tennis circuit in 2010 with a serious wrist injury which explains why he is ranking has fallen so significantly, Del Potro has been in good form this year reaching the quarter finals of the Australian Open before being defeated by Roger Federer. This will prove worrying though as should Del Potro make it to the French opne quarter finals his most likely opponent will be The Swiss number on Federer, who is chasing his 17th grand slam title.
The twenty three year old is the only player outside of the world’s top three players (Rafa Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic) to win a grand slam tournament in the last seven years. With some good performances and a good recovery from his wrist injury, should this knee injury scare be nothing more than a twinge, tennis fans will be hoping to see him to break into the big three once again and challenge for a grand slam soon. Del Potro is certainly full of potential and with a full recovery and age on his side one can only assume he will reach the top once again.
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July 23, 2012 11:10 am | 
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