Juan Martin Del Potro Claims to Have Envisioned Becoming World No.1 at the Australian Open 2019 Before the Career-Ending Knee Injury

Juan Martin Del Potro won his only Grand Slam title at the 2009 US Open.

Juan Martin Del Potro Claims to Have Envisioned Becoming World No.1 at the Australian Open 2019 Before the Career-Ending Knee Injury

Juan Martin Del Potro (via Olympics)

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Juan Martin Del Potro has reflected on his career, missing chances after an incredible time on tour. The Argentine legend revealed that he had a chance of becoming World No.1 on tour in 2018, but missed out on the chance of reaching that height after failing to calculate properly on his chances of doing so.

The 37-year-old had an impressive professional career but often struggled with injuries. It was a constant battle for a player destined to define an era in the ATP Tour that was dominated by Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. He was left at the mercy of his body, which prevented him from finding any consistency.

Throughout his time on tour, he was plagued by wrist and knee injuries and never managed to shake them off. But at the age of 20, Potro used his huge forehand shots to beat Nadal and Federer on his way to winning the 2009 US Open. He was seen as a player ready to challenge the Big 3 and Andy Murray.

But injury forced him to reach only one Grand Slam final after that. And that came at the 2018 US Open. That year, he won the Indian Wells Masters and was flying high in form. He reached World No.3, a career-high ranking after reaching the final of the US Open, but lost the title to his rival and friend Djokovic.

Following his run at the Flushing Meadows, there was a mathematical chance of him becoming World No.1 only if he had good runs in all his tournaments before the season ended. But a knee injury forced him to be away from the court. During an interview with Puntodebreak, the Argentine tennis icon narrated how he felt after a missed chance of becoming World No.1:

When I reached the final of the 2018 US Open , ranked 3rd in the world and completely exhausted, I went back on the Asian tour. I ended up going because I envisioned being number 1 after the 2019 Australian Open. I had a real mathematical chance that if I played well in those tournaments I could be number 1. That’s when I ended up falling, breaking my knee, having to stop, and then the whole nightmare with my leg began.

Del Potro’s final tour-level match came in February 2022 at the Argentina Open in Buenos Aires. He hinted after his first-round loss that his career was over because he struggled with injuries. He had not played in three years before that match as he had fractured his knee at the Queen’s Club Championships in 2019.

Juan Martin Del Potro reflects on his injury nightmare

Juan Martin Del Potro claimed 22 tour-level titles in his career, which was below expectations as he had an amazing talent and skills. After becoming famous at 20, injuries marred his career, which forced him to retire early. His only major silverware after the 2009 US Open, was the silver medal at the 2016 Olympics.

Juan Martin del Potro
Juan Martin del Potro (via Sunday Times)

During the aforementioned interview, the 37-year-old noted that he had to get injections to play matches on tour due to the injuries he sustained. He added that he made some bad decisions about how to deal with his injuries as he was so mindful of getting back to the court and competing:

I had to get injections many times. Quite a few. Many in my knee, I had three surgeries on my wrist, but maybe that was because I made some wrong decisions. The sport puts you under so much pressure and you have to achieve things that you can’t stop. I didn’t want to stop because I had to be in the top 5 or top 3. I didn’t want to lose my ranking, so I got injections.

Del Potro played his farewell match in Buenos Aires last December against Novak Djokovic. The exhibition match was titled The Last Challenge, with the Argentine winning 6-4, 7-5.

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