Juan Martin del Potro, who lost in the third round to Lucas Pouille at Wimbledon, said his second round upset of Stan Wawrinka left him very tired.
“Well, of course, as you can see I'm exhausted,” del Potro said. “I finish really, really tired this tournament. Yesterday was even [worse] than today. My body is hurting everywhere, but that's normal after a big match against Wawrinka. I have to keep working hard, because in the future I will need to be ready between matches and feel better physically than today."
Del Potro, who has been struggling physically for nearly seven years, says he will keep working
"I'm not hurried to play better, I'm not hurried to grow up in the ranking," he said. "[I] just have to stay patient and keep working hard, trying to get better as soon as I can.”
The 27-year-old Del Potro returned from a left wrist injury in February, and has played eight tournaments. In 2015 he only played two tournaments, and in 2014 he played just six events.
Currently, he is unable to fully hit his two-handed backhand. But the former U.S. Open champion views his comeback, to date, as a positive one.
“I'm very confident, very positive with the situation,” he said. “I already played three matches in this tournament against big players. I did a great match today against the 30th player in the world, and I was there—very, very close to [winning] that match. So [that means] my level could be better in the end of the year or the next season, too.
"But I need to work hard physically—my wrist, my backhands. Then I will be competitive in all surfaces and against all the players.”