Juan Martin del Potro Claims Silver Medal
An ominous beginning
Upon looking at the 2016 Olympic draw last week, Juan Martin del Potro thought, ´´Ok, it´s going to be a short tournament for me.´´ Little did he know that he would be returning home with a silver medal.
In the first round, del Potro faced Novak Djokovic, the best player in the world who won three Grand Slam tournaments last year. In comparison, del Potro won a total of two matches last year.
Furthermore, del Potro has had three surgeries on his left wrist, putting a dampener on his tennis career over the past few years. The odds were definitely not in del Potro´s favor.
Del Potro defies the odds
Nevertheless, del Potro surprised the world with spectacular tennis, beating Djokovic, Joao Sousa, Taro Daniel, Roberto Bautista Agut, and Rafael Nadal to advance to the finals of the Olympics.
Del Potro competed against Murray in the finals, and the crowd was absolutely churning with excitement. Great Britain was cheering for a second consecutive gold medal for Murray. Argentina was cheering for the unthinkable for del Potro.
Del Potro comments on the roar of the crowd: ´´For sure, the crowd made me run. I saw my team, all the Argentinian people who came to watch me in the finals. My country was behind me. I felt all of these things on the court.´´
In the end, it was Murray who took the gold medal. However, del Potro had achieved something amazing by winning the silver medal: he proved that he is still in the game and can dominate the best of them.
After his spectacular run in the Olympics, the world will have its eye on del Potro as he continues to compete with the top players.
