Juan Martín del Potro has announced that he plans to retire from tennis after failing to recover from a knee injury that he said has become “a nightmare”.
The former US Open champion, 33, will return to the court for the first time in two and a half years at this week’s Argentina Open, a tournament he last played as a 17-year-old. But in an emotional press conference ahead of the event in Buenos Aires, Del Potro revealed that his comeback may also double as his swansong.
“Before I start this conference I would like to send a message,” said the Argentinian, whose ranking has plummeted to 757. “I have spent a lot of time thinking and imagining about this day, and I think this is one of the most difficult messages I will ever deliver.
“I know that people are expecting me to return to tennis, but this may be more of a farewell than a return. I have strength to go forward, but my knee is becoming a nightmare. I have been trying alternative treatments for a number of years, with different doctors and attempts to fix it, but I have still not found a solution.
“But I never imagined retiring from tennis without having the chance to say goodbye and I can’t imagine a better tournament than Buenos Aires to do it. After the next couple of weeks, God will say what comes next in my future.”
When a 20-year-old Del Potro beat Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer to win his first major at Flushing Meadows in 2009, he looked certain to become a fixture at the top end of the sport for years to come. Injuries dictated otherwise.
By the end of 2010, Del Potro had fallen outside the top 250, his seemingly inexorable rise stalled by an injury to his right wrist that required surgery. Problems with his left wrist later necessitated three further operations, driving him out of the sport for much of 2014 and 2015, and forcing him to modify his backhand when he returned.
Del Potro’s injury woes were far from over, however. In 2018, just weeks after reaching the US Open final for a second time and climbing to a career-high ranking of No 3, the ill-starred Argentinian suffered a fractured patella at the Shanghai Masters. He returned to the tour four months later, but a recurrence of the problem at Queen’s Club marked the beginning of a protracted period on the sidelines during which he went under the knife four times in search of a solution.
“After these weeks we will see what happens with my future, but I am clear that I want to live like a person of 33 years and try to not have pain,” added Del Potro, who has also accepted a wildcard for the following week’s Rio Open.
“I’ve been sleeping with pain for two and a half years. I used to drive three and a half hours to Tandil [his home city] and now I have to stop to stretch my leg. I don’t like it, but it’s what I have to do. My fight is about health and winning quality of life.”
It remains to be seen whether Del Potro, who faces countryman Federico Delbonis in the opening round in Buenos Aires, will compete in Rio. However brief his return may be, his impact on the sport has been remarkable considering the extent of his injury misfortunes. Aside from the US Open, the most significant of his 22 titles, the 6ft 6in Del Potro, affectionately nicknamed “the tower of Tandil”, was a bronze medallist at the London Olympics in 2012 and won silver four years later in Rio. He also claimed the Indian Wells title in 2018, the same year he reached the sixth major semi-final of his career at Wimbledon.
In total, Del Potro reached the quarter-finals or better at 13 grand slam tournaments, while his record against the top three – which includes seven victories in 25 meetings with Federer, six in 17 against Nadal, and four in 20 versus Djokovic, whom he twice defeated at the Olympics – is notable in an era when he became one of only a handful of players to intrude on the triumvirate’s monopoly of the major titles.
“I can’t wait to get on the court,” said Del Potro, looking ahead to his Buenos Aires opener against Delbonis. “This is why I had surgery last time.
“I couldn’t ask for another rival other than Fede, together we share the happiest days. Beyond the anguish and sadness, I want [it] to be an unforgettable day. Having the tournament in Buenos Aires made me feel like it was now or never again.”