“His thing is impressive, I couldn’t do that” Juan Martin Del Potro speaks highly of Rafael Nadal’s longevity and dedication to the sport

Juan Martin Del Potro opens up about his feelings about Nadal's retirement run.

“His thing is impressive, I couldn’t do that” Juan Martin Del Potro speaks highly of Rafael Nadal’s longevity and dedication to the sport

Juan Martin Del Potro and Rafael Nadal (Imagw via: Imago)

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Juan Martin del Potro gave a surprise visit to the Caja Magica in Madrid today, where the second clay-court Masters of the season is underway. The Argentinian made some time to interact with fans and also to engage in discussion with the Madrid Open team on their Twitch channel.

During this discussion, he spoke about several interesting topics, including the future of tennis with Alcaraz and Sinner and the past with the Big Four.

The highlight, however, was what he had to say about Rafael Nadal and how he is proceeding with his retirement. The gentle giant provided his insights on why he finds Nadal’s retirement plans pleasing and said he wishes he could have done something similar to it.

Del Potro was forced to end his career abruptly a couple of years ago due to constant injury troubles. He played an emotional last match at the Argentina Open in February 2022, but announced later that he would try to play the US Open in 2023 one last time before calling it a day.

This plan never came to fruition, and some bittersweet undertone can be sensed about this in the way he spoke about Nadal’s final run this year and also about how an amazing era of tennis is nearing its end.

I think we have to start assimilating that a tennis stage is going to end. Roger is no longer there, but his legacy was very marked forever. And now Nadal is giving himself the pleasure of retiring in his own way and under his own conditions.
Juan Martin del Potro via Madrid Open Twitch podcast

He also took a moment to reflect on some of his best memories playing against the Spanish legend and mentioned a few matches that stood out for him.

And it's something that unfortunately I couldn't do for my health. Rafa's thing is impressive. Seeing him play and seeing that passion for competing and that energy he has is something unique and I don't know if there will be something similar in the coming years. I hope I'll cross it now and say hello and I'll keep watching it on TV. I'm not watching much tennis, but if Rafa or Novak plays, of course I look at it.
Contining further, Juan Martin added

Every time the two greats clashed on the court, a phenomenal battle could be expected. Del Potro was going toe to toe with the big four, winning the 2009 US Open before his knee injuries started getting the better of him, and he remains one of the biggest ‘what ifs” in tennis, even to this day.

Rio's match was emotionally very strong and spectacular, as an Argentine in Brazil and against Rafa. Another game I remember was the semifinals of the 2009 Us Open, but there is one that I lost against Nadal who was at Wimbledon 2018. I lost that game, but at the end we gave each other a hug.
Juan Martin del Potro concluded

Juan Martin del Potro shows why he is called the gentle giant!

After he arrived at the Madrid Open for a surprise visit, fans took no time to notice Juan Martin del Potro and gather in large numbers around the legend of the game.

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Del Potro, who is probably used to being in such situations, was as gentlemanly as ever.

He greeted all the fans with a big smile and took time to click some photos with them. He also signed many souvenirs for the fans while interacting with the lot.

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