Juan Martin Del Potro took his comeback to new heights on Tuesday, when he upset Dominic Thiem 7-6(5), 6-3 in round one of the Mutua Madrid Open. Del Potro picked up his best win since 2013 by beating the No. 14 player in the world after one hour and 44 minutes.
The 27-year-old Argentine fought off three set points while serving at 4-5 in the opener before consecutive love holds led to a tiebreaker. Del Potro saw a 3-0 advantage evaporate and soon found himself trailing 5-4, but he won the final three points to take it.
Perhaps bogged down by the first-set disappointment and by a quick turnaround following a 7-6(7), 4-6, 7-6(4) loss to Philipp Kohlschreiber in the Munich final on Sunday, Thiem fell away in the second. The 22-year-old Austrian got broken right away and squandered four break-back chances–two at 3-1 and two more at 5-3.
“I have just played my best match since I came back to tennis after my surgeries,” Del Potro assured. “I’ve had a great test against a very high-level player.”
Del Potro wins, Mohamed almost climbs out of his chair in excitement https://t.co/5Omj4uCkK9
— The Grandstand (@TennGrand) May 3, 2016
Del Potro in tears…😢😢😢😢 Vamos @delpotrojuan pic.twitter.com/ZI85hlUOtq
— Giorgio Spalluto (@GeorgeSpalluto) May 3, 2016
Rafael Nadal also contested his opening match of the tournament on Tuesday and had no trouble during a 6-3, 6-3 defeat of Andrey Kuznetsov. Having already enjoyed a first-round bye, Nadal booked his spot in the last 16 by cruising in one hour and 18 minutes.
The fifth-ranked Spaniard awaits either Lucas Pouille or Sam Querrey, while Del Potro will face Jack Sock on Wednesday.
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DELPO
Great win for Delpo….his backhand must be getting better!