Del Potro Withdraws from Shanghai

“There’s no need to take a chance at the end of the season when you can get a full two months to train and recover for 2011.”

True – but I wonder what the “other issues” were or are?

October 7th, 2010 at 9:52 pm

Juan has always seemed a little low on endurance. He’d play & win one or two tourneys and them he’d show up lame from food poisoning, heat, exhaustion, heat & exhaustion or a sore something or another. I was hoping it would be something he would eventually grow out of. Still have my fingers crossed for him.

October 7th, 2010 at 10:10 pm

But what if he plays and loses? No big deal. He needs more matches before 2011.

October 8th, 2010 at 12:33 am

His mental/emotional state has been mentioned as fragile ever since he won 2009 US Open. Sounds like to me that he is not handling his stress and expectations that he or others have put on him. Could it be coincidence that all these “injuries” keep popping up when he has a big match or tournament? Is he just another one-hit wonder that doesn’t hve the mental fortitude required to win? Tennis is a mental battle where only the strong survive, regardless of talent.

October 8th, 2010 at 4:36 am

Sean where did u get the info he withdrew. I didn’t see it on the atp site or google?

October 8th, 2010 at 10:15 am

Wow this is a shocker. Prehaps he doesn’t feel strong enough yet to play well which has shown in his recent losses. I don’t think Del POTRO is a 1 slam wonder, I always saw great qualities in him, a champions mentality more than his peers and I think that he will be a slam winner again for sure, he is only still a babe lets not forget.

October 8th, 2010 at 6:30 pm

These are KIDS remember and Cynthia how is your mental fortitude and you slam record.

October 9th, 2010 at 4:56 pm

The author might need a to/too/two refresher.

October 9th, 2010 at 7:28 pm

Del potro strikes me as the kind of guy whose happy hes made a bit of money from tennis and now wants to go and spend it in peace. Nalbandian has also gone AWOL for massive periods of his career and then turns up again when he can be bothered. Gaudio won the French and basically disappeared. These argentinians arent cut out for long periods away from home grinding out a living on the tour i dont think.

Del Po is insanely talented yet ever since hes won the US Open he looks like he cant be bothered. I dont think hes handling the whole fame thing particularly well at all and in the matches that ive seen in his comeback hes tanked after losing the first set. I sincerely hope we see the real Del Potro in 2011 but im beginning to wonder if hes destined to be another enigma who comes and goes when he pleases. I think there might be a French Open in him but anything else id be surprised.

October 10th, 2010 at 11:56 am

Del potro is an extremely talented tennis player. But in the high stress world of being in the top 10 or top 5, much more is required than talent. They need mental endurance. Being a young tennis player can be a positive thing, such as not really letting the pressure get to you because you are young and maybe cocky or have a lot of confidence. Unfortunately, when it does finally get to them, it can hit them like a ton of bricks. I think Del Potro has been hit by a ton of bricks, as he has had a lot of down time to reflect on his game and the pressures and competitors. Only time will tell if his mental game will hold up as well as his physical game (post injury). The letdown after being hailed a national hero in Argentina may have taken a toll mentally. Many tennis commentators have also mentioned this. He poses a good challenge to the likes Federer and Nadal. Some in his predicament have withered and some have flourished. Or some will show their greatness sporadically and with inconsistancies. He needs to let his body heal in its own time and slowly build the endurance and fitness back up. You cannot force or think you are an exception to the rule just because you want to heal faster and better than the average person because you are an athlete. I don’t like to see any player injured but time heals. His love or lack thereof of the game will really show next season.

October 30th, 2010 at 3:24 am