Juan Martin Del Potro turned back the clock on Friday, and by doing so he unexpectedly surged into the Wimbledon third round. Appearing on Centre Court for the first time since an epic 2013 semifinal loss to Novak Djokovic, Del Potro scored his best win since the 2013 Shanghai Masters with a 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(2), 6-3 victory over Stan Wawrinka.
The oft-injured Argentine had not defeated anyone ranked as high as No. 5 Wawrinka since toppling then-No. 1 Rafael Nadal at the aforementioned Shanghai event. And for a while it appeared that elite opposition would once again be too tough for Del Potro in his 2016 comeback. Wawrinka needed only one service break in the first set to ease through it without any serious trouble.
But that’s when Del Potro calmed his nerves and sank his teeth into the match. The 27-year-old broke for a 3-1 lead in the second set and held the entire way to level things at one-set apiece. After trading a total of four breaks in the third, Del Potro and Wawrinka battled their way into a crucial tiebreaker. The Swiss never had a chance in it, surrendering three mini-breaks while failing to win a single return point of his own.
Wawrinka staved off two break points at 2-3 in the fourth, but he was all but finished when Del Potro stuck for a 5-2 advantage. The 2009 U.S. Open champion delivered one final clutch hold to clinch victory.
“It was great,” Del Potro reflected. “The last time I been in the Centre Court was against Djokovic, in that amazing semifinal that I lost. Now I came again. The crowd was unbelievable with me. The atmosphere on there was amazing. They [respect me]. It’s very nice just be on the Centre Court of this magnificent tournament. Is great for all the players.”
“It’s great for the tennis to see him back,” Wawrinka added. “He’s a great guy, a really good player; big champion. You can see already he played few matches this year. He beat some good guys. Today he was playing really good. I think he was serving really well. His forehand is there.
“His backhand, he’s still struggling a little bit because he cannot play free completely with what he wants, so he’s slicing a lot. But on the slow grass, it’s tough to do something (against his slice).”
Del Potro agreed that he can still be very effective despite not being at his best.
“As you can see, my backhand is not 100 percent yet, because now I’m playing too much slices,” he admitted. “But on this surface, that is a great game to do it, because the grass helps me a little bit when I hit slices or when I came to the net. But I know how far I am from my high level. I’ve been working hard to be 100 percent next season.”
But with his current draw at the All-England Club, Del Potro may not have to be in peak physical condition right here and now in order to make a real run. Dominic Thiem has also been bounced from the third section of the bracket and Alexander Zverev is stuck in a rain-delayed fifth set against Mikhail Youzhny.
As for the immediate future, Del Potro will face Lucas Pouille on Saturday.
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