Juan Martin del Potro ready to pull off ‘surprise’ against Novak Djokovic

US Open

Shahida Jacobs
September 9, 2018

The last time he played in the US Open final, Juan Martin del Potro upset the odds, and he believes he can do a similar job when he takes on Novak Djokovic in this year’s showpiece match.

Back in 2009 Del Potro was the underdog when he took on Roger Federer, a man who had won the previous five tournaments at Flushing Meadows, in the final.

Despite being up against it, he secured a stunning 3–6, 7–6 (7–5), 4–6, 7–6 7–4), 6–2 victory over the top-ranked Swiss to claim his only major to date.

He will again be considered the underdog when he faces Djokovic on Sunday, but is backing himself to get the job done again.

“Novak has won Wimbledon already. He’s playing so good. He will be the favourite to win on Sunday,” he said. “But I don’t know. When I played Roger nine years ago, he was the favourite to win, as well. I will try to make the surprise again.”

He added: It will be a big challenge, as well, because I’ve been fighting with many, many problems to get to this moment.

“I’m here now. It will be a difficult match… In the finals, anything can happen. If I win, great. If not, I have been playing a great tournament and I will be happy anyway.”

Juan Martin del Potro v Novak Djokovic: US Open final preview, stats and betting.https://t.co/VkhpXd9VsW

— Tennis365 (@T365Official) September 8, 2018

Djokovic, meanwhile, will be gunning for a third title in New York and second Grand Slam of the year having also won Wimbledon.

He reached the final on the back of a brilliant 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 win over Kei Nishikori and admitted that he is feeling “very comfortable” at Flushing Meadows.

“Seeing the results, the consistency of the results I’ve had here, it probably has been my most successful Grand Slam,” he said.

“Of course, I won the Australian Open six times, never lost finals there. I think I’ve played more than 10 semi-finals here. It’s definitely one of my favorite tournaments to play because of the conditions and because of the fact that I’ve played so well in each year that I keep on coming back to the US Open.

“I know that I feel very comfortable here. It just allows me to feel more comfortable playing, starting the tournament and going through it. I have two finals won and five losses. But hopefully I can get one better in few days.”