In the first match of the day on Arthur Ashe, Juan Martin Del Potro took on eighth seed Dominic Thiem, but after just a set a half, the Argentine made it through to the quarterfinals by retirement.
First set comeback from Del Potro
Del Potro started proceedings with a solid hold of his serve, and Thiem followed suit to even the scoreline at 1-1. The Austrian applied some pressure early on with some sharp groundstrokes, and with a perfectly constructed lob he broke the Argentine’s serve. The eighth seed consolidated the early break without difficulty, but Del Potro wasn’t far behind, keeping just the one break between them. Despite some difficulty with his shoulder and a visit from the trainer, the wildcard continued on court. Next, it was Thiem’s turn to be put under pressure, and a combination of hard hitting from Del Potro and a couple of mishits from the Austrian was enough to even out the scoreline, 3-3.
Once the Argentine relaxed into the match, points became a lot more competitive and before long, he found himself leading once again, 4-3. Consistent, hard hitting gave him a break point opportunity, and as Thiem dumped a forehand into the net, Del Potro was just four points away from the first set. Sealed with an ace, the Argentine lead 6-3.
Injury problems for Thiem
Thiem tried his best to move his opponent around the court to create opportunities, but Del Potro was just too strong, firing aces and forehands around Arthur Ashe. He broke serve for 2-1, and the Austrian became increasingly frustrated. The 23 year old appeared to have some discomfort in his leg, which the wildcard took advantage of by making him move. Despite taking it to deuce, Del Potro remained up a break, 3-1.
Thiem, who was hardly using his legs, looked frustrated and uncomfortable, but managed to hang on by his fingertips to keep his chances alive in the second set. After taking a medical time out, Thiem only played one point before making the decision to retire.
The Austrian’s year has been packed full of tennis and the poor scheduling has finally caught up with him. He’s often been playing for consecutive weeks this year, which has proved to be an unsustainable way of competing. In the future, Thiem will have to plan tournaments more carefully. As for Del Potro, only playing a set and a half will certainly keep him fresh and energised for his future matches, a positive thing for him considering how unfamiliar he is with playing long matches at the moment.
Del Potro has advanced through to the quarterfinals, where he will face either Stan Wawrinka or Illya Marchenko for a place in the semifinals. This is his first US Open quarterfinal appearance since 2012.