Del Potro wins in straight sets, Nadal, Murray, and Nishikori all survive in Rio

A long, nerve-racking day of action at the Rio Olympics saw three of the top four seeds in the men’s singles tournament earn their spots in the semifinals. The lone outsider? None other than Juan Martin Del Potro, whose dramatic run through the Rio de Janeiro draw continued on Friday with a 7-5, 7-6(4) win over Roberto Bautista Agut.

The 27-year-old Argentine’s appearance in the semis comes as a huge surprise, and not simply because he has missed much of the last few years due to wrist issues. Del Potro had to go up against Novak Djokovic right away in the first round of these Olympics, but he pulled off a 7-6(4), 7-6(2) upset. The 2009 U.S. Open champion then needed three sets to scrape past Joao Sousa and Taro Daniel.

Although Del Potro’s scoreline against Bautista Agut marked his most routine of the event, it was far from easy. The Spaniard recovered from two breaks down in the opening set on the way to a 5-5 deadlock and he also erased a break down in the second to force a tiebreaker. Each time, though, Del Potro came up with the goods when it mattered most.

The 2012 London Olympics bronze medalist will battle Rafael Nadal on Saturday for a guaranteed medal–and a place in the final.

“I cannot believe the moment,” Del Potro said. “The crowd makes me cry in every match. I don’t want to think about Rafa yet; he is the next opponent and he is the favorite to get to the final and get the medal, but I am so glad with my success and I will try to be 100 percent.”

Nadal may not be 100 percent physically or emotionally, either. The former world No. 1 has already played four singles matches and five in doubles during this tournament. Those five doubles matches culminated in a gold medal on Friday night. Nadal and Marc Lopez recovered from a break down in the deciding set to outlast Florin Mergea and Horia Tecau 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 in a memorable doubles championship match that lasted two hours and 30 minutes.

In his singles quarterfinal contest, the Spaniard battled back from a set deficit to beat Thomaz Bellucci 2-6, 6-4, 6-2.

No. 2 seed Andy Murray and No. 4 seed Kei Nishikori survived even tougher contests, both requiring third-set tiebreakers to advance. Murray prevailed after trailing by a break in the final frame of play to get past Steve Johnson 6-0, 4-6, 7-6(2). Kei Nishikori fought off three match points and won the last five of his showdown against Gael Monfils to triumph 7-6(4), 4-6, 7-6(6).

“It feels special because we don’t get this opportunity all of the time, competing to win medals for your country,” Murray commented. “For me, it has nothing to do with having won the gold in London. It’s trying to win more medals for your country and your team and I’ll give my best shot to do that.”

[polldaddy poll=9496407]
[polldaddy poll=9496408]