Del Potro, 27, will now go on to face Portugal’s Joao Sousa in the second round on Monday.
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“It’s very sad and disappointing on my side to go out of a tournament this early, but on the other hand, I’m glad a good friend of mine and somebody who has struggled a lot in the last couple of years with injuries is back and playing at this level”. He was all over the court, rifling shots past Djokovic.
Phelps, the U.S. swimming juggernaut whose 22 Olympic medals include 18 golds, is usually the man inspiring awe among his fellow athletes.
Rafael Nadal dominated his first match since the French Open, beating Federico Delbonis 6-2, 6-1 in the opening round of the Rio Olympics on Sunday afternoon.
Del Potro has dropped to 141st in the world after nearly two years out with wrist problems. It’s not the first or the last time I am losing a tennis match. I didn’t expect to beat Novak tonight.
The 29-year-old has backed that up with the 2013 and 2016 Wimbledon titles.
Del Potro has fallen outside the top 100 in the world rankings but showed flashes of the hard-hitting brilliance that helped him win the US Open in 2009. He was still slicing often Sunday, but the two-handed shot is beginning to look more comfortable.
In the second-set tiebreaker, del Petro crushed two straight forehand winners on Djokovic’s serve to take a 3-0 lead. Employing intensely aggressive tactics, he was up 6-5 on Djokovic – but the Serb managed to even the score, leading to a second set tiebreak.
On the final point, del Potro’s forehand shot clipped the net and dropped in.
Djokovic was under pressure from the off as a pair of rasping forehands from the racket of his Argentine opponent combined with a handful of unforced errors forced him to defend three break points in the opening game of the match. But the No. 1 ranked holder is still alive in doubles, though, so a gold medal in Rio remains a possibility. Argentina’s Del Potro cried because he did his best and won.While Novak’s tears were as bitter as never before.
Gonzalo Carou said the team found the incident “funny”, but said it could have been less amusing if Del Potro’s had lost his match against Djokovic.
“This is how Delpo started the day: trapped in an elevator at the Olympic village for 40 minutes”, Viale wrote on his Twitter page with Del Potro’s photo.
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This defeat comes just several weeks after Djokovic lost to Querrey, ranked 28th in the world, and it’s certainly raised concerns about the Serbian’s true condition. He won a hard-court tuneup in Toronto before coming to Rio de Janeiro.
