Juan Martin Del Potro comes from a set down to beat John Isner and reach semi-finals
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Updated 05/09/2018 at 12:40 GMT
Juan Martin del Potro came from a set down to beat John Isner 6-7(5) 6-3 7-6(4) 6-2 and reach the semi-finals of the 2018 US Open.
Juan Martin Del Potro of Argentina celebrates at match point during the men's singles quarter-final match against John Isner of The United States on Day Nine of the 2018 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 4, 2018 in
Image credit: Getty Images
As the intense heat at Flushing Meadows continued, Del Potro and Isner exchanged big serves in what was at times a fairly attritional affair.
Isner won the first in a narrow tie break but Del Potro bounced back to claim the second relatively comfortably.
The third was another tie break, this time won by Del Potro, before the heat forced the players off for a break in the fourth set.
Speaking after he had won that fourth set to reach the last four Del Potro spoke about the heat and what he did during the break.
I took a shower and then I rotated my ankles and then I laid down on the table and I didn’t want to come back again, because the heat, it’s impossible to play tennis. But with this crowd, with these people, I’m here.
He added "I’m so happy to reach another semi-final in my favourite tournament. That’s very special to me.
"And of course beating John in this kind of match, it’s like an epic match. We both felt tired in the end, we both fought all the match, and I think I survived with my serves in a couple of important moments of the match, and that was the only key."
It is only the second time in Del Potro's career that he has reached the semi-finals of two different Grand Slams in the same year.
The last time was in 2009 when he reached the semi-finals of Roland-Garros and then won the US Open.
In the next round he will face defending champion Rafa Nadal.
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