Is Del Potro the new dark horse of Tennis???? Dark horse or not, he deserved to win. Having been able to beat Nadal in the semi-finals and Federer in the finals of the US Open 2009, there's not much to say but "Well done and congratulations!"
Juan Martin del Potro did what many thought unlikely, if not improbable.
He dethroned Federer as the US Open champion, ending his five-year reign as the King of Queens, in a come-from-behind 3-6, 7-6 (5), 4-6, 7-6 (4), 6-2 victory for his first major title.
It was the first five set men’s final since 1999, when Andre Agassi defeated Todd Martin and one of the biggest US Open upsets in recent memory with the No. 6 seed defeating the 15-time Grand Slam champion and world No. 1. It was also del Potro’s first career victory over Federer in seven matches.
Del Potro, just 20 years old, became the second Argentine in history to win the US Open, joining Guillermo Vilas, who won in 1977. He certainly earned it, taking out six-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal in straight sets in the semifinals before defeating Federer in the final.
He collapsed on the court on match point and with tears in his eyes he took the trophy, completing the dream of winning his favorite tournament. Read more.
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* Roger Federer's unbelievable shot during the semi-finals, considered as his best shot ever. During his match with Novak Djokovic, he returned a shot in between his legs and surprisingly the ball landed past Djokovic. Watch the video below.
* Will Rafael Nadal be able to bounce back from injury? I was hoping to watch another Federer-
Nadal game at the Finals but had my doubts on Nadal's health. During interviews, he kept on avoiding questions about his health/injury. I'm not sure if that was his way of being positive--psychologizing himself perhaps that he is perfectly well and that nothing's physically wrong with him??? But I had a feeling that sooner or later, if his body's not in good shape, he will eventually be in pain--and I was right--he had a problem in his right abdomen during the semi-finals. Which conjured up more questions in mind: Was he really physically well when he started playing in the US Open?; Is there anything else wrong with him other than his knee and abdomen?: And why the secrecy when it comes his health?* If Del Potro is the new king of US Open, Kim Clijsters makes a comeback and wins the Women's Finals. Read more here.
The US Open is the last Tennis Grand Slam for the year. The next (and first) Grand Slam for 2010 is on 18-31 January in Melbourne, Australia . For tickets, click here.
