During an emotional press conference in Buenos Aires, Juan Martin del Potro has revealed that his latest comeback to the tour this month may be the last matches he plays before retiring.
The former US Open champion stunned reporters in the Argentine capital on Saturday when he opened up his press conference with a short statement concerning his future in the sport. Del Potro is set to return to action next week at the Argentina Open in what will be his first tournament since June 2019 due to a knee injury which has required a total of four surgeries.
Reflecting on his ongoing fitness battle, the 33-year-old was close to tears as he disclosed for the first time that his return to tennis might just be so that he can say his final farewell to the sport.
“Before I start this conference I would like to send a message,” Del Potro began. “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 the 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 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.
“It’s a difficult decision, but I wanted to make it clear.”
Throughout his entire career, Del Potro’s rise in the sport has been hampered by injuries and surgery. He was just 20-years-old when he stunned Roger Federer in five sets to win the 2009 US Open. However, in the following years he was forced to spend long periods of time away from the Tour due to injury. Besides multiple knee operations, he has also undergone one right wrist and three left wrist surgeries. He was named the ATP’s comeback player of the year in 2011 and 2016.
Despite his multiple setbacks, Del Potro has won 22 titles on the ATP Tour, reached a ranking high of third and is a two-time Olympic medallist. He has also earned more prize money than any other Argentine player in history.
“Unfortunately, I had to deal with many injuries but I have fulfilled all my dreams with tennis. I have achieved most of the things I wanted to achieve,” he reflected.
“Maybe I won’t have a miraculous return to tennis like the ones I always had, possibly another decision in my career is just around the corner because of how my leg feels and how difficult it is for me. When it becomes part of everyday life and not sport, other things come into play.’
“I am a guy who likes to be active, run, play soccer, share with friends and all those things today I am unable to do. I never gave up, today it’s hard for me to move and I keep trying.’
“I want to enter the court on Tuesday and do my best to win, feel that internal fire that I always had in my career because I learned it when I was little and it doesn’t come out otherwise. In a few days with more calm I will see the direction to take”.
It is clear that the world No.3 continues to struggle with his knee after going through what he describes as ‘two-and-a-half years of pain.’ He says his focus now remains on his quality of life in the long term. Although he hasn’t completely ruled out the chance he could find a solution for his knee and somehow continue his career. Drawing inspiration from Andy Murray and others who have defied the odds.
In his opening match at the Argentina Open, Del Potro will take on compatriot Federico Delbonis who is two years younger than him. The two have only ever played against each other once before which was back in 2017 at Indian Wells.
“Obviously I’m going to want to win and do it in the best way,” he said. “Throughout this injury I always said that I was not going to give up and that I did not want my retirement to be in a press conference, but playing tennis. That’s why I decided to take on this challenge of going out on the court in a tournament where I practically started my career, I played it when I was very young.”
Del Potro also confirmed that he will play at the Rio Open which follows straight after Argentina after receiving a wildcard. That could be the last tournament of his career.
