“This is more of a farewell than a comeback. I’m making too much effort, my knee is making me live a nightmare. I never imagined my retirement from tennis, but there was no better tournament to do it than this one. I want to live like a 33-year-old person, no pain”, launched the man from Tandil with a broken voice and a sorrowful tone.
Del Potro was forceful. His future is not long-term and only contemplates the ATP in Buenos Aires and then Rio de Janeiro. “That is for now, and one of the possibilities is retirement. I got here enduring this, ”said the former number 3 in the world.
After two and a half years, the man from Tandil will play again and write what will surely be the final chapter. His right knee ached, distressed him, cost him four surgeries plus other non-invasive and stem cell treatments. On Tuesday night he will return to the BALTC after 16 years to face Delbonis in a duel with Croatian reminiscences.
“I had to play with a friend. There was no better rival, together we lived the most beautiful days in this sport. Surely Tuesday will be another unforgettable day and that he is there makes me happy “, evaluated, in the midst of absolute tears, the winner of 22 ATP titles over the tennis player from Azul. On November 27, 2016, both were the heroes in Zagreb when Argentina won the Davis Cup.
At the beginning of September, during the US Open, Del Potro himself publicly showed his intentions to play tournaments that he had not played in a long time. An unbridled illusion was immediately unleashed to see him once in the country. When the ATP in Buenos Aires confirmed his presence last Monday, the real madness began.
“In October I decided that I was going to play in Buenos Aires and I asked my physical trainer to train me for that. I lost 12 kilos, I practiced standing up, I improved and I did everything to be here”, said Del Potro about the evolution in recent months.
Delpomania in Buenos Aires
Almost all tickets were sold out on Thursday. Next Tuesday, the day scheduled for its debut, it will have full capacity both during the day and at night. Subscriptions also ran out quickly.
It is that the “Tower of Tandil” has not played officially in Argentina for almost a decade. The last time was on September 14, 2012 in the Davis Cup series in which the national team lost to the Czech Republic. On that occasion, the strained relationship between Del Potro and Martín Jaite, then captain and today still director of the Buenos Aires event, was made clear.
The former world number 3 played six times in the country. For the Salad Bowl, he played two series in 2008, one in 2011 and another two the following year. He only participated in the Argentina Open in 2006: at the age of 17, he fell in his debut against the Spanish Juan Carlos Ferrero 2-6, 6-4, 6-4.
The expectation to see him again in action is not only from the public. “Of course I’m going to play, I can’t wait to get on the court on Tuesday. I keep making a tremendous effort to be able to play. I love this sport, but it is difficult to deal with so much pain”, he was honest.
“Perhaps there is no miraculous return to tennis this time, but another painful decision is just around the corner. The message that I would like to leave behind is that I never gave up. I keep thinking about entering the court on Tuesday and giving it my all”Del Potro expressed, always excited and with the bitter taste that what was and will not be again.
The history between the man from Tandil and Delbonis marks a single antecedent. In 2017 they met for the second round of the Indian Wells Masters 1000, and “Delpo” won 7-6 (5) and 6-3. The winner of this match will meet in the round of 16 against the winner of the duel between Juan Ignacio Lóndero and the Spanish Pablo Andújar.
The other great local figure will be Diego Schwartzmann, the defending champion and the tournament’s second favorite behind the Norwegian Casper Ruud, number 8 in the world and winner of the BALTC in 2020. Both will start in the second round with rivals to be confirmed. On Thursday, Austrian Dominic Thiem announced his withdrawal from the tournament due to a wrist injury.
It also highlights the crossing that will maintain Sebastian Baez, one of the most prominent names in Argentine tennis and who received a wild card to play the tournament, with the Norwegian Holger Rune, also invited. It is a match of opposing styles between two players of the same generation and with very different paths to reach the elite.
It will not be another edition of the Argentina Open. What seemed to be the triumphant return of the last great Argentine tennis star turned into a farewell. Within hours of the start of the tournament, the public gave the 2009 US Open champion its affection. There will no longer be an epic return. Simply a final act tailored to Del Potro.
Source: Ambito
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