The Argentine fans were ecstatic when Juan Martin del Potro announced a comeback to tennis. The former US Open champion was out for more than two and a half years owing to knee and wrist injuries. Subsequently, he had two surgeries which took time to heal. As a result of his absence from tour, his ranking dropped to #753 in the world.

The towering Argentine returned to tennis at the Argentina Open. However, he went down to his fellow countryman Federico Delbonis in straight sets. Post the loss, he had some interesting things to say in what would be his final match on Argentine soil.

Juan Martin del Potro bids farewell to Argentine fans

The 33-year-old was emotional after his match. He said, “I will remember this moment for all my life. I fulfilled all the dreams I had in tennis and it brought me all the love of the people, which is my best trophy. This is my last match. I’m happy to have played it in front of my people.”

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Further, he added, “I needed to close my career like this. I will remember this day for the rest of my life. I don’t know if I’m going to Rio. Now, I have to talk to the doctors and see what’s best for my health.”

Unfortunately, the 6’6″ right-handed player’s return to the court wasn’t successful. He lost to the sixth seed Federico Delbonis 6-1, 6-3 in an hour and 23 minutes. The former World Number 3, who had been handed a wildcard entry to participate at the Argentina Open, was on the back-foot right from the word go. He looked rusty, which can be quite understood, given his long break from tennis.

After his post-match interview, del Potro was indicative of his struggle with injuries. He had initially accepted the wildcard entry to play at the Rio Open. However, he will have to miss the tournament after not being completely fit.

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What are your favorite moments from Juan’s career? Let us know in the comments.