The longing for another title hero in the Grand Slams has a name: For Juan Martin del Potro it would be the crowning glory of his comeback after years of horror.
When Juan Martin del Potro ended Roger Federer’s long winning streak nine years ago on a magical tennis night, the power architecture in the tennis circus also seemed to be shaken. Del Potro, called “El Palito” (“The Beanpole”), acted like someone who could break the dominance of the Titans – with his high-speed strokes, with his passion, with good nerves in the heat of the duels. Del Potro’s career was more than straightforward until that dream moment, he was the youngest professional in the Top 100, the Top 50, the Top Ten and then also in the Top 5.
But after the successful ascent of the Big Apple, of all things, the years of suffering of the “Tower of Tandil”, the fragile 198 centimetre giant with the big heart and the seriously injury-prone body, began: “I have had real horror years,” says del Potro, “I wasn’t far from quitting tennis”. Del Potro had to endure three wrist operations alone, he was repeatedly thrown back in his efforts, again and again he had to tackle arduous comebacks. But now, in 2018, a little eternity after his first and only Grand Slam coup, the highly gifted player with the hard punch seems to be able to cause a real stir under the Grand Slam establishment again.
Finally without injuries, finally without fears and doubts about his competitive ability, the gripping Argentinian rushes through the tournament rounds at the US Open as a matter of course – also on Sunday the crowd favourite never came into danger with the smooth three-set victory over the youthful challenger Borna Coric (Croatia). “He said that he was “highly satisfied” with the course of the tournament so far: “I still have enough energy in my tank for what’s to come”. Whoever comes first is John Isner, the physically even bigger 208-centimeter serve giant who is currently experiencing his best time in the professional circuit. But who normally doesn’t have enough tennis resources to overthrow del Potro.
Last year del Potro had already caused a sensation in the city where his star in the tennis heaven once seemed to rise. Against Austria’s ace Dominic Thiem, he turned and averted a completely crazy game after trailing 0:2 sets and a 2:5 and 0:30 deficit in the fourth round, thereby delivering a masterpiece of persistence, willpower and defiance. Also against Maestro Roger Federer del Potro, this Sisyphos of the tennis world, went to his limits, won in four contested sets – and then retired tired in the semi-final against Matador Nadal. The Spaniard finally also won the tournament, once again one of the almost untouchable leading elite.
As much as the renaissance of the old Titans Federer and Nadal last inspired, as much as the brilliant comeback of the temporarily crisis-ridden Novak Djokovic was impressive – many in the industry and among fans also have a longing for other title heroes, for variety in the freestyle of the Grand Slam champions. And no one embodies this longing more than the long-suffering del Potro, who two years ago landed his biggest coup besides the US Open victory in 2009 – the silver medal at the Olympic Games in Rio. “Who wouldn’t grant him this victory here,” says Sweden’s former champion Mats Wilander, “he undoubtedly deserves to be on top of the podium again”.
Unlike a year ago, del Potro was able to preserve its strength for the hot Grand Slam final spurt. He hasn’t lost a set yet, there shouldn’t be a long battle of wear and tear against Isner either. In the semi-finals, the electrifying duel with Nadal, the world leader, perhaps the strongest player in the here and now, could be repeated. “If I won another Grand Slam title, it would be the greatest moment of my career,” says del Potro, “after all I’ve been through.”