I will try to play my best tennis in order to beat Nadal, says Del Potro
Argentinian Juan Martin Del Potro maintains that he will do his best to outplay âKing of clayâ Rafael Nadal in the semi-final of the 2018 French Open tomorrow. The Spaniard is the undisputable favourite to secure hie 11th French Open title after a tough win against Diego Schwartzman in the quarters.
World number one and two, 32-year old Rafael Nadal and 36-year old Roger Federer, have been a perfect example of the adage âage is just a numberâ, with their recent form on the court that has been a stern reminder of their technical prowess. The duo has fascinated the world with their sheer resilience and determination and proved that they are just like wine, which only gets better with time.Â
The Spaniard has been the overwhelming favorite to lift his 11th French Open trophy this time after he was made to work in his quarter-final match against Diego Schwartzman. Nadal found himself a set down after the first game but recovered to eventually win the match with a score of 4-6 6-3 6-2 6-2. In doing so, Nadal set up a semi-final encounter against 29-year old Argentinian, Juan Martin Del Potro.
Del Potro, who is currently ranked sixth in the ATP rankings, beat Marin Cilic in the quarters with a score of 7-6 (5), 7-5, 6-3, 7-5 in a match that lasted over 50 minutes. Delpo, as he is popularly known as, would face Nadal next in the semis. And the Argentinian has rightly conceded that it would be a tough task to defeat Nadal but maintained that he was up for the challenge.
"Tomorrow I will try to play a match as I did in a different surface against Rafa, but he's lefty and what I say before my match against Ramos, a lefty player has an advantage with me because he can find easily my backhand, and he knows what my backhand is at the moment.
"But anyways, I will try to do my best, to play my best tennis, and see if I can do a good match," Del Potro said in the pre-match interview.
The duo has faced each other just once at the Roland Garros back in 2007Â when Nadal had won in straight sets. However, Del Potro has beaten Nadal in two of their last three meetings all of those wins came on a hardcourt surface.
