Juan Martín del Potro was born in Tandil, Argentina, on 23 September 1988 and started tennis at seven with Marcelo Gómez. At 1.98 m he grew into one of the tallest men at the top of the game, and his weapon was a flat, penetrating forehand that rocketed through the court.
In 2008, coached by Franco Davín, he won four tournaments in a row, and a year later he won the US Open. In the final he beat Roger Federer 3–6, 7–6, 4–6, 7–6, 6–2, coming back after trailing by a set and a break. He also reached the final of the 2009 ATP Finals, losing to Nikolay Davydenko.
Then his wrists began to fail. He had an operation on his right wrist in 2010 and three more on his left wrist in 2014 and 2015, and for long periods it seemed his career was over. He kept coming back. At the 2012 London Olympics he won the singles bronze by beating Novak Djokovic, and at Rio 2016 he won the silver medal. That November he led Argentina to its first Davis Cup title, coming back from two sets down against Marin Čilić in the final.
His late peak came in 2018. He beat Federer in the Indian Wells final for his first Masters 1000 title, reached the US Open final, where he lost to Djokovic, and on 13 August 2018 rose to world No. 3, his career high. In June 2019 he injured his right knee, and after three knee operations he did not play again on the tour until February 2022, when he played what he called more of a goodbye than a comeback. He formally retired in 2024 after a farewell exhibition against Djokovic. He won 22 singles titles.