The massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake that shook Chile early Saturday morning was felt in Argentina by tennis star Juan Martin Del Potro.

Del Potro, who was in Buenos Aires recovering from a right wrist injury, said he woke up because of the earthquake in the early morning hours.

“I was sleeping when at approximately 3:30am I started feeling dizzy and also hearing loud noises,” he said to ATPWorldTour.com. “The first thing I thought was that I had left the windows open and the wind was making the noise when it hit against the walls. I live on a high floor of an apartment building so I didn’t think this was out of the ordinary.

“Everything in my apartment was shaking and when I walked into my living room, the curtains and the decorations on the walls were shaking as well. This went on for 5-6 minutes,” the US Open champion added.

“I am very saddened that the second natural disaster has taken place in such a short amount of time in the Americas, affecting so many people,” he said. “I have traveled to Chile many times in my life and love the people and the country. My thoughts and prayers are with the people of Chile today and I pray that as many people as possible will escape this terrible disaster safely.”

The fifth-ranked Del Potro is still hoping to be ready for the Indian Wells Masters 1000 event which begins on March 11.

The powerful earthquake struck southern Chile at 3.34am local time Saturday morning near the coastal town of Concepcion which is over 800 miles from Buenos Aires.

Chile is still scheduled to host Israel in a first round Davis Cup tie starting next Friday in Coquimbo, a town around 600 miles north of Concepcion.

Filed under: 2010 Season
Tags: Earthquakes, Juan Martin Del Potro