LONDON, April 13, 2017 (Press Release)
The Olympic silver-medallist Juan Martin del Potro is the fourth Grand Slam champion to join the Aegon Championships line-up at The Queen’s Club, adding his name to those of World No.1 Andy Murray, 14-time Grand Slam title winner Rafael Nadal and the reigning US Open champion, Stan Wawrinka.
Del Potro, who narrowly lost out to Murray in the Olympic final in Rio last year, and then gained revenge a couple of months later in the Davis Cup by BNP Paribas semifinals before leading Argentina to glory in the final, can’t wait to return.
“I am so happy to be coming back to the Aegon Championships at Queen’s Club. It is a great event, to me a very traditional moment of the calendar, such a nice place to play in front of fans that have always been nice to me. I have some very special memories from reaching the Wimbledon semifinals in 2013, winning the bronze medal at the Olympics in London 2012, and playing the Davis Cup in Scotland last year. The people were good to me even when I was playing Andy (Murray)! I want to try to bring my best tennis to the grass at Queen’s this year and if I do, I think I can make some good results.”
Aegon Championships Tournament Director Stephen Farrow, said: “Juan Martin is hugely popular both on and off the court and we are delighted that he is returning to the Aegon Championships. Everyone knows what a brilliant player he is, and he showed in the Olympics and the Davis Cup last year that he can still take on and beat the very best players in the world.”
Del Potro burst on the scene as a teenager and won the US Open aged just 20. He looked set to challenge the top players for the very biggest honours in the game for years to come, but he was derailed by wrist problems that required surgery. He returned at the start of 2016, and his run to the Olympic silver medal last year was greeted with rapturous, emotional acclaim.
As well as Murray, Nadal and Wawrinka, Del Potro joins last year’s runner-up Milos Raonic, Grigor Dimitrov and Nick Kyrgios in the singles draw, with Jamie Murray already committed to playing doubles.
With Centre Court capacity increasing by 30% in 2017, more than 15,000 additional people will be able to watch the action at the Aegon Championships – the ATP World Tour 500 Tournament of the Year. The tournament has already sold more than 9,000 additional tickets than ever before.
Earlier this year, Andy Murray made a career-commitment to play in the Aegon Championships, and the BBC announced that they will cover the tournament until at least 2024.
Last year, the Aegon Championships was voted ATP-500 Tournament of the Year by the players – the fourth successive year that the event has received a tournament of the year award.
Tara McGregor-Woodhams, Head of Brand & Sponsorship, Aegon UK said: “Juan Martin del Potro is one of the most exciting tennis players in the world and it’s great news that he is coming to the Aegon Championships. We are in for a wonderful week of tennis at The Queen’s Club.”
