So I was at the qualies and I saw this one dude play, and currently he's only 113 in the world, but eventually, if he strengthens up, I think he'll be top 20 at least.
Juan Martin Del Potro of Argentina. Just wanted to be the first to say this.
Very stylish game and hits pretty flat for an Argentine. Capable of huge power. The x factor is his fitness. I like this kid's game. But he better strengthen up.
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The food was overpriced and as crappy as ever, and it was stupid hot the day I went. Del Potro was the only guy I saw that clearly looked like he might be destined for the top 10, but I guess he wasn't as impressive as Verdasco and Hewitt when I first saw them.
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When I saw him play, it seemed like he was sick or something. Not sure if it was his fitness but I kept thinking if Brian Vahaly could just push him 20 minutes more, Del Potro would default. That didn't happen though. So I guess I don't REALLY have a handle on how well he moves for a guy that tall.
But he's got a lot of filling out to do. ATPtour.com has him listed at 170 pounds, which means that if he's not careful Sally Struthers will try to sponsor him. But the shots are all there. He is deceptively powerful and every so often he would just hit a screamer off his forehand.
Deceptively powerful especially in light of his opponent, Vahaly, who is short and relies on consistency, especially off his backhand side, which is a really sweet looking soft, sort of like a, gulp, poor man's Spadea. Vahaly was swinging very hard and Del Potro was swinging so smoothly, like he wasn't trying, yet it was Vahaly who was scrambling to keep up with every shot.
Del Potro is like Safin in that way, a lot of his "power" comes from the fact that he's so deceptive. From what I saw. With Andy Roddick, he hits hard but you he can't put the ball anywhere using the same exact motion. Del Potro is more like Safin, the same swing can put the ball anywhere at all different levels of pace.
No, he's not a serve a volleyer. Can't remember if he came to the net a lot or not. He didn't really have to. Even while wheezing between points, looking like he was going to pass out, he was ripping winners and drawing unforced errors like crazy on Vahaly.
He plays with a lot of flair. Nice to see so many stylish young players on the scene right now. Potro, Monfils (his personality, not really his game style), Gasquet, and Bagdhatis. Potro, I guess, also sort of reminds me of a more stylish Berdych.
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The way I read it, "who" is about when he's done outlining the similarities between Sam and Del Potro. From what I've seen, aside from their height, they're not that alike. They both have big serves and forehands but that's true for half the top 100. Del Potro hit the ball with flair, whereas Sam, to me, looked more mechanical. The guys who hit with a bit of flair, especially when they're that big, I might tend to assume once they get their game together, they'll be able to do much more with their shots than somebody who's mechanical. And then there's a guy like Malisse who never got his act together so never did much.
