In his interviews, Del Potro seems more willing to be a little funnier, slightly sharper and always on the ball.
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Del Potro is returning to his best after a stunning few weeks, which started with him beating Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal at the Rio Olympics before pushing Andy Murray to four sets in a thrilling final.
Del Potro held a 6-3, 3-2 lead when Thiem tapped out and limped off the court after just 72 minutes of play.
He rallied to win that set, but Thiem then took a medical timeout when he endured a right knee injury in the second set.
Tugging at his right leg between points, Thiem went for winners early in rallies in an effort to shorten points.
A grimacing del Potro clutched the back of his serving shoulder after one double fault and briefly consulted the trainer for right shoulder treatment during the opening set.
“At the beginning of the match it was basically OK”, he said, “but from the end of the first set, beginning of the second set, it got worse and worse”. But a knee is something where you shouldn’t try out too much, ” Thiem said, who said he will get an MRI exam.
Thiem, who turned 23 on Saturday, has reached the French Open semi-finals and cracked the top 10 in his breakthrough year.
And the long season had started to wear on his body, including after 12 sets in the opening four rounds at Flushing Meadows. Entering the US Open with concerns over her serving shoulder, the 22-time major victor hasn’t been broken through four rounds and uncorked the fastest serve of the women’s tournament at 126 miles per hour (203 kph).
He said: “I never expected to play that many matches, of course, this year”, he said.
Del Potro’s opponent in the quarterfinals will be the victor of the match between Switzerland’s Stan Wawrinka and Ukraine’s Illya Marchenko.
For Del Potro, he progresses through to the last eight of a Major tournament for the first time since he reached the Wimbledon semi-finals in 2013. “She gives everything to win all the matches”. “I think I played one of (my) best matches so far”.
In Wednesday’s quarterfinals, Konjuh will face 10th-seeded Karolina Pliskova, who eliminated Venus Williams earlier Monday.
Kei Nishikori returned to the U.S. Open quarterfinals with a straight-set victory over No. 21-seeded Ivo Karlovic.
Juan Martín del Potro, in his quiet and ambling fashion, has built up a steady body of work on his return to the tournament he won in 2009, and, with the crowd warming to every pistol crack of his huge forehand, he enters the quarter-finals on Wednesday as a risky contender.
Suarez Navarro, seeded 11th, was seeking the sixth Grand Slam quarterfinal of her career. “I’m playing good tennis”. My level is going up every day.
Somebody noted that at the 2009 U.S. Open, which ended with a victory over Roger Federer in the final, he beat an Argentine, an Austrian and a Spaniard along the way – just as he’s done this year.
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“If I can combine slices and volleys with my old backhand, [IT] would be more risky for my game, and I will be comfortable with all my weapons”, he said. “But it’s a good point”.
