Del Potro swept 19th-seeded American Steve Johnson 7-6 (5), 6-3, 6-2 on Thursday. Should he get past that, his potential opponents on the way to the final are Italy’s Fabio Fognini, who took out Nadal previous year, or veteran David Ferrer in round three, talented Austrian teenager Dominic Thiem in round four, Nick Kyrgios or Wawrinka in the quarter-final, and Murray in the semis.
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Afterward, Johnson acknowledged that he came out tight in that match because he felt the pressure of being an American playing in the U.S. Open.
The Rio 2016 silver medallist remains on track to earn his second crown in NY, having eased through 7-6 (3) 6-2 6-3 in straight sets.
He defeated the 23-year-old in their only other meeting, on clay in Madrid this year.
Two past men’s champions, Andy Murray and Juan Martin del Potro, moved into the fourth round.
“The worst part of my life is totally in the past”, del Potro said, “and I’m living a good present and looking forward for a good future”.
Juan Martin Del Potro was the feature performer during Thursday’s night session at the U.S. Open.
The fans in NY still remember how del Potro rallied to stun five-time defending champ Roger Federer in the 2009 final. She got 69 percent of her first serves in and won 12 of 15 points at the net. He added, though: “He definitely baited me the whole set for me to say that”.
“To be honest, I’m still feeling exhausted”, said del Potro.
A little more than two weeks ago, fresh off earning a silver medal at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, del Potro was awarded his wild card, allowing him into the main draw of the U.S. Open for the first time since 2013.
Johnson, the world No22, is enjoying the best year of his career but the 26-year-old was crushed under the weight of Del Potro’s huge forehands and thunderbolt serves. And they appreciate how he’s come back from the three left wrist surgeries that had him contemplating retirement. “Hopefully I can play better than here in that semi-final because it’s very important for me, for my team”. I don’t know; I’m not in her shoulder.
“For me, it’s enough just being [able to play] tennis again”, del Potro said.
Johnson forged a phenomenal comeback in his opener against Evgeny Donskoy on Monday, trailing 2-5 in the third set after dropping the first two sets, but the newly minted top American in the world fought off match points and won the final three sets to advance. The 2009 victor will be back in action Saturday against David Ferrer who just needed five sets to win.
Having climbed back to 142nd in the rankings, Del Potro needed a wildcard to get into the U.S. Open.
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That one, glorious effort remains del Potro’s only Grand Slam championship. No. 11 Carla Suarez Navarro, No. 4 Agnieszka Radwanska vs. Ana Konjuh, and No. 10 Karolina Pliskova against the victor of Saturday night’s match between Williams’s older sister Venus and No. 26 Laura Siegemund. It all ended when Babos double-faulted on match point.
