“Depressing” – Tennis Fans Show Concern for Juan Martin Del Potro’s Fitness After Leaked Footage in an Exhibition Event

Just weeks after a group of Chilean robbers broke into Juan Martin Del Potro’s home and stole, among other things, his trophies, he was spotted playing in an exhibition event in Chisinau, Moldova, with noticeable difficulties with his knee.

He wore a black knee brace supporting his knee, was somewhat overweight, and had very limited mobility during the exhibition tournament. He was one of the invited stars in the lead-up to this week’s ATP Challenger in Chisinau, which was held to celebrate the opening of Moldova’s first National Tennis Center.

These days, playing exhibition matches, even in places where tennis is not very popular, has become an avenue for Del Potro to consolidate his financial position. He has had a particularly challenging few weeks following the robbery of his home. Besides that, he was not in his best physical shape during the exhibition match.

He looked physically exhausted during the doubles match alongside his partner Lia Belibova. In fact, at one point during the match, the Argentine declared himself exhausted and gave his place to Prime Minister Alexandru Munteanu, who is a tennis enthusiast. Afterward, Del Potro and the Prime Minister played together for a few minutes.

Del Potro and Belibova lost the doubles match at the exhibition tournament to former World No.1 Simona Halep and Moldovan Radu Albot 4-6, 6-2, 7-10. However, a clip of the match was posted on social media, which sparked fan reactions, and they were surprised by his physical level. Here are the reactions from fans on X:

Del Potro worked harder than any other tennis player I've ever heard of to try and get back and end his professional career on his own terms and he never got to do that. He's also repeatedly said he misses the game desperately and often feels lost in life without it.

Can't… https://t.co/MjYmXT0rvO

— Scott Barclay (@BarclayCard18) May 25, 2026

I swear the way the tennis gods treated that man should be an arrestable offense 😭

— absolutelyEpic137 🐝 (@totallyEpic137) May 25, 2026

He has severe knee issues it hurts to see him playing

— Andrea (@AnVista34) May 25, 2026

He has a destroyed knee, it's not easy to stay in good shape.

— Flavio 🇮🇹 🥺 (@FlavioBert899) May 25, 2026

It’s so sad to see him like this 😢

He is going through a lot ,
His house in 🇦🇷was robbed recently…

— Lara (@darlingane2) May 25, 2026

It is very sad and for tournament/venue organiser to put him through this really isn’t a very nice thing to do. You can see the poor man is suffering.

— Johanne Paquette (@EquipePaquette) May 25, 2026

im a bit heartbroken seeing this… what a player that was…

— Filip Żołyński (@filipzolynski) May 25, 2026

Don’t know why he’s playing on clay…… I’d be deathly afraid of slipping or moving the wrong way and hurting the knee more! I would stick to hard courts for the rest of my life

— Michael Novelli (@novelli_michael) May 25, 2026

Holy shit get this guy some gear and get him in the enhanced games asap Jesus that's just depressing. Is that what I got to look forward to?

— Mr Rager (@MikeOxxbig23) May 25, 2026

37-year-old Del Potro retired from the professional circuit in February 2022 after a successful career. He won the US Open, Davis Cup, and an Olympic medal, and reached a career-high ranking of World No. 3. However, the major highlight of his career was beating Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal on the court before injuries prevented him from going further.

He had nine surgeries as a player with immense talent, five of them on his wrist, four on his right wrist. The fracture of the kneecap in 2018 after falling on the hard court at the Rolex Shanghai Masters became his undoing, as he never fully recovered from the injury. It was evident during the exhibition tournament in Chisinau as he moved very little and was extremely cautious.

Juan Martin Del Potro did not reveal any information about the robbery in Moldova

Juan Martin Del Potro fell victim to a robbery by a gang of Chilean thieves, specializing in the theft of jewelry, medals, and watches from top athletes’ homes. The gang of robbers broke into his home in Argentina and stole dollars, jewelry, and a gold wedding ring that belonged to Del Potro’s mother.

They also made away with rackets and the trophies he won during his professional playing days. The police later arrested just two of the robbers after tracing a vehicle belonging to one of them. However, Del Potro didn’t discuss the incident during the exhibition match in Moldova. He revealed during the post-match press conference that the match was focused on inspiring children to take an interest in the sport:

It’s fantastic for the children. There aren’t many countries that have such good conditions. I wish them much success and it’s an honor for me to be here.

Del Potro hopes to recover from the robbery incident by getting more exhibition matches and paid tournament appearances. However, the robbers caught by police had an Interpol red alert and an arrest warrant issued by the Justice system of their country. The gang had robbed wealthy athletes in Florida, USA before retreating to Argentina.

Also Read: Alexander Zverev Explains Why Europeans in the Men’s Circuit Dominate the French Open