US Open champion Juan Martin del Potro will return to competition at the Argentina Open 2022, in which he will face countryman Federico Delbonis. Tennis fans are eager to watch ‘Delpo’ in action again, however, the Argentinian has shared that this comeback is more of a farewell.
Del Potro, 33, is known to be the first man to win a Grand Slam beating both Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer at the 2009 US Open. He has collected 22 titles in his career, including the Davis Cup in 2016 and two Olympic medals: bronze in London 2012 and silver in Rio 2016.
However, the Argentinian, who has reached a ranking of world No. 3 in 2018, also has struggled during his whole career with wrist and knee injuries. During a press conference on Saturday, Del Potro said that his retirement was close as the knee has him “living a nightmare.”
When was the last time that Juan Martin del Potro played?
Del Potro, 33, will play for the first time in an ATP tournament in two years and half. His last tournament was the Queen’s Club Championships in 2019. He fractured his kneecap in his first round match against Denis Shapovalov, which threatened his career.
Since then, he has undergone four right knee surgeries: June 2019, January 2020, August 2020 and March 2021. In 2010, he first injured his left wrist and has undergone surgery three times. During the press conference on Saturday, Del Potro admitted that his return to the tour wasn’t so clear.
“It might not be like that and maybe it’s more of a farewell than a comeback,” he said of his planned tournament play. He explained that he still feels intense pain in his knee. ″For many years I have been trying alternatives and treatments and doctors and different ways to solve it but I have not been able to do it.”
Besides the US Open 2009, Del Potro won the BNP Paribas Open in 2018, beating Roger Federer in the final. That same year, he reached the final of the US Open for the second time in his career, losing against Novak Djokovic in three sets.