The world No. 1 has dominated the tennis circuit, which is why everyone assumed he would have no problem defeating the Argentine.
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Despite their last meeting being later that year and Del Potro only recently starting his latest comeback from a lengthy injury lay-off, there was still some expectation that this would be the pick of the ties in the opening round.
An upset helps – and Djokovic’s shock straight-sets loss in the first round at Rio 2016 on Sunday was just that – but the duo proved once more why the sport stays at the Games. But clearly, neither Olympic medalist was happy about the prospect of losing at the Olympics in the first round.
Although emotions were running high, Djokovic regained his composure to congratulate his opponent on his win. Apparently, he told Juan that he was happy for him.
Murray, playing for the first time since securing his second career All England Club title four weeks ago, next faces Argentina’s Juan Monaco, one of his closest friends on tour. “But you’ve got to deal with it”.
In what was the marquee match of the Olympics so far, del Potro had three break chances to take an immediately lead, saved well by Djokovic. It’s not easy to handle, especially now, just after the wounds are still fresh.
The Serbian, who could yet earn a medal in the doubles alongside veteran Nenad Zimonjic, battled hard but ultimately failed to find an answer to Del Potro’s attacking prowess.
A gracious Djokovic said: “In decisive moments, he just came up with some extraordinary tennis”.
Unfortunately, the 27-year-old del Potro has spent years recovering from multiple surgeries. It looks like he is off to a great start at the Rio Olympics.
Earlier today, he was stuck in an elevator for 40 minutes before being rescued by his country’s handball team.
Del Potro, the towering Argentine with thunder in his forehand, has had more than his share of setbacks, including multiple wrist operations that have knocked him repeatedly out of the top tier of the men’s game. He played exactly how one would expect the world’s No. 1 player to play: He got to shots that seemed impossible to reach, he hit forehands with precision and power and he displayed every shot in an elite player’s arsenal. Djokovic warmly embraced the Argentinian at the net before walking off the court in tears himself.
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“Tonight I played one of the best matches of my career”. He would upset fourth-seeded Stan Wawrinka in the second round there, and even though a tired del Potro lost his next match, it was a hint that he might yet still have some greatness in him. It will be interesting to see how far the 2009 US Open victor will go in Rio.
