A contemplative Juan Martin Del Potro expressed pure exuberance after his truncated victory over Rafael Nadal on Friday, pushing him to his second grand slam final nine years after winning the US Open.
Invoking the countless wrist injuries that kept Del Potro from defending his title in 2010 and kept him off the tour for long stretches in more recent years, the 29-year-old Argentine said he is overwhelmingly happy with his current play.
“I cannot believe that I will have a chance to play another grand slam final here, which is my favorite tournament,” he added. “It would be special to me. Would be a big challenge, as well, because I’ve been fighting with many, many problems to get in this moment.
“In the finals, anything can happen. If I win, great. If not, I’ve been playing a great tournament and I will be happy anyways.”
Del Potro frequently discussed his low point in 2015, when he nearly quit tennis and his ranking dropped into the depths of professional tennis. He began to rebound a year later, winning the Olympic silver medal and leading Argentina to the Davis Cup title, then lost to Nadal in the US Open semifinals a year ago.
In 2018, he won his first Masters title at Indian Wells, reached the semifinals at the French Open and quarterfinals at Wimbledon, and is now playing at his career high rank of No. 3.
“That (history) is completely in the past, and now I’m having a good present, looking forward for the future,” Del Potro said. “I didn’t expect to get this kind of emotions playing tennis again. Reaching finals, winning titles, having my highest ranking ever in this moment — everything is almost perfect.”
The veteran Argentine said he continues to treat his wrist on a regular basis, and that he will never be exactly the same player he was a decade ago. But he had more than enough to overpower Nadal through two completed sets before the Spaniard could not continue, and it will give him a shot at a second title, nine years after stunning Roger Federer.
“My wrist, it’s okay. I know I’m not 100 percent, but I can play tennis in these conditions.”
