The US Open is the tournament that most marked the tennis career of Juan Martín del Potro. In addition to the title he won in 2009, in what was his only Grand Slam trophy, he also reached a final against Novak Djokovic in 2018 and always put up great performances that made him one of the public’s favorites. . Now, the contest in the New York cement could be the scene of an unexpected return, according to a promise that the man from Tandil made in relation to soccer and that, he assured him, he intends to fulfill.
Before the World Cup in Qatar, Del Potro had promised that if the Argentine National Team became champion in the tournament, he would try to play the next US Open. And now, in the middle of a promotional tour of Brazil, the former number 3 in the world said that he will seek to fulfill it.
“If Argentina won the World Cup, I was going to try to play the US Open. Now (Lionel) Messi and the team put me to train,” said the man from Tandil at a press conference that the Tennis News site raised, although he made it clear that for now it is something premature. “I still have a lot of pain. Before Qatar I did not have it in mind, but now I think about it a lot,” he remarked as part of his tour of San Pablo as ambassador of Roland Garros. A tournament for promising youngsters is being held in that city, the prize of which will be a special invitation to the winners to compete in the next edition of the junior French Open.
The last time the 2016 Davis Cup champion was seen on a court was in February of last year, when he lost in two sets against Federico Delbonis from Azul, at the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club in which he said goodbye at the Argentina Open. Although he never made his retirement official, Del Potro hinted that he was saying goodbye to professional activity after a series of operations on his right knee, from which he could never recover.
Despite the fact that he believed that his time on a tennis court was a closed issue, he now assured that he will return to training after the conquest of the Argentine National Team in the Qatar 2022 World Cup. The objective will be to be present at the US Open, Grand Slam which he won in 2009 in a memorable final against the Swiss Roger Federer. In addition to the Davis Cup, another of Del Potro’s consecrations when he represented the country were the silver medals at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games and the bronze medal at London 2012.
During his stay in São Paulo, Del Potro participated in activities with Brazilian children and provided details of his career. In this sense, the man from Tandil made it clear that the only objective he could not achieve was to reach the top of the world ranking. “I think the only thing I lacked is to be number one in the world. It was always a dream and I worked to try to be the best. But I’m also super proud of my career, and I never managed to be number one because Nadal, Federer or Djokovic were there”, reflected Delpo, who, far from being upset, was very satisfied to have fought against the Big Three. “When I see the years of my career and who I was fighting to be number one with, it’s very nice to know that they were the ones who didn’t let me achieve that dream.” Del Potro reached his best historical position in the ranking in August 2018, when he placed third for three consecutive weeks.