Juan Martin del Potro has by no means called time on his tennis-playing career. However, he has just played one match in the last three years owing to a knee injury.
The Fifa World Cup concludes this Sunday, December 18, as Argentina takes on the defending champion France in a high-voltage final. Legendary Lionel Messi will hope to win the biggest title in football while Kylian Mbappe is seeking his second world cup win at the age of just 23.
Argentina did not have a smooth journey en route to the final. They began with a shocking 1-2 defeat against Saudi Arabia in the first match of the group stages. The current holders of Copa America had to bounce back strongly with their backs against the wall. They did so with aplomb and defeated Mexico and Poland to top their group. In the round of 16, Argentina eased past Australia while the quarterfinals saw the South American giants defeat the Netherlands on penalties. Argentina made it to the final by steamrolling Croatia 3-0 in the semis.
Former Grand Slam champion Juan Martin del Potro has been cheering for his country throughout the tournament. He has upped the ante now by teasing a return to the US Open in 2023 if Argentina manages to bring the world cup home.
The incident happened when a fan asked if the 34-year-old is willing to make a return to Flushing Meadows if La Albiceleste wins the world cup.
“Delpo, if Arg champion wins, you play the US Open next year, what do you think?????” (Translated from Spanish).
The reply from Martin del Potro will certainly bring smiles to the faces of his fans.
“Come on, I do my best” (Translated from Spanish).
The Tandil-born Juan Martin del Potro was amongst the best players of his time. He gave the ‘Big 3’ a good run for their money in various matches.
Del Potro turned pro in 2005. He played his first professional tournament, the Lines Trophy in Reggio Emilia in 2005. He was ousted in the semis by fellow countryman Martin Vassallo Arguello.
Del Potro won the Challenger event in Montevideo at the age of just 17 by defeating Boris Pasanski in the final. In 2006, he played his first ATP Tour-level event in Vina del Mar.
The Argentine youngster won the Copa Club Campestre de Aguascalientes by getting the better of Sergio Roitman in the final. Del Potro qualified for the main draw at a major for the first time in his career at the 2006 French Open. He lost to Carlos Alcaraz’s current coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, in the first round.
2008 proved to be a memorable year for del Potro as he won four titles on the trot. The 2008 Mercedes Cup held in Stuttgart was the first title that del Potro won on the tour.
Del Potro followed up the impressive season in 2008 with a fantastic season in 2009. He won the US Open by defeating Roger Federer in the final. Interestingly, Del Potro was the tallest-ever Grand Slam champion and now he shares the record with Marin Cilic and Daniil Medvedev.
Del Potro won the bronze medal at the Olympic Games in 2012 in singles. He defeated Novak Djokovic to win the bronze medal.
In 2013, he reached the Wimbledon semifinal and made a comeback into the top 5 after the previous few years saw him miss a lot of action due to injuries.
Del Potro won another medal in singles at the Olympic Games in 2016. This time he won the silver medal after losing to Andy Murray in the gold medal match.
Injuries became a big obstacle in Del Potro’s career. He returned to form in 2018 and won his first Masters title at the BNP Paribas Open. He reached a career-high ranking of world No. 3 on 13 August 2018.
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