Delray tennis
JuanMartin del Potro returns after nearly a year
Top-seeded Kevin Anderson is among high seeds to fall on ATP tournament’s second day.
DELRAY BEACH There were no apparent signs of rust for JuanMartin del Potro.
After being sidelined 11 months due to a wrist injury, del Potro returned to the tennis court as if he never left. He needed just a little more than an hour to defeat Denis Kudla 6-1, 6-4 Tuesday in the first round of the Delray Beach Open.
“I have been through a very hard road,” del Potro said. “It’s amazing forme… It’s so nice to see people cheering for me.”
The Argentine del Potro rose to fame in 2009 when he defeated Roger Federer in the U.S. Open before injuries slowed his career. He had fourwrist injuries, including three on his left hand, in five years. He jokingly said he spent most of the time watching the television show, “The Simpsons” as heworked hisway back.
The question now is can he revert to old form?
This was hardly the epic performancewhenhe beatFederer in a four-hour match. After cruising in the first set against Kudla, he had a bit of difficulty in the second. When he scored the final point, del Potro raised both arms in relief.
“It’s my first match after my surgery,” del Potro said. “I don’t have too much to say. I will keep trying to play.”
The match capped what was day full of upsets.
In one of the early matches, Austin Krajicek defeated topseeded Kevin Anderson 7-6 (3). Anderson retired after the first set due to a shoulder injury. Itwas the first of consecutive upsets by Americans, with Rajeev Ram knocking offNo. 2 BernardTomic.
“Ranking-wise, it’s obviously my biggest win, so that’s exciting, but it’s never the way you want to get it done, especially (against) someone that’s a good friend,” Krajicek said. “I had an idea that maybe (Anderson’s) shoulder had been bothering him a little bit, but I just tried to prepare and take care ofmy side of the court.”
Afterward, Krajicek said he hoped it was nothing serious for Anderson because of their friendship. Anderson, of South Africa, is theworld’s 14th-ranked player but felt it was best to discontinue the match to prevent further injury. He will undergo an MRIWednesday.
“It was incredibly painful,” Anderson said. “Obviously, it’s been a very frustrating start to the season. At this point, I don’t think it’s worth pushing too soon.”
In the ensuing match, Ram defeated 20th-ranked Tomic in straight sets 7-6 (3), 6-1. Ram said he is playing the best tennis of his career. He won last year’s Newport title and had “a coupleTop 20 wins” in recent months.
“I picked up a new racquet last May and just really felt like I was finding all the parts of my game, and the results show,” Ram said.
The top three seedswere eliminated before the conclusion of the second day of the 32-player field. Late Monday night, defending champion andNo. 3 seed Ivo Karlovic lost to qualifier John-Patrick Smith.
“I felt from the start [of the match] I had a chance,” said Smith, who arrived here with an ATP World Tour ranking of No. 135. “Basically, from the get-go I playedwell.”
Smith’s win denied Karlovic, who is rankedNo. 26 in theworld, his 300th career win. It was Karlovic’s first match since retiring in the first round at the Australian Open because of a right knee injury. He is the first defending Delray Beach Open champion to lose in the first round sinceXavierMalisse in 2008.
In other matches, American Taylor Fritz fell to Tim Smyczek 6-3, 6-3. At18, Fritzwas the youngest player in the tournament.