Del Potro Battles Back to Stun Thiem in Five

DELPO DOES IT!Thiem double faults on match point & the comeback is complete for @delpotrojuan!He wins 1-6, 2-6, 6-1, 7-6, 6-4.#USOpen pic.twitter.com/Gw6Kcb3GQx

— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 5, 2017 Juan Martin Del Potro has done the unthinkable. Getting up off the canvas after looking out of it for the first two sets, the 2009 champion rallied to defeat Dominic Thiem, 1-6, 2-6, 6-1, 7-6(1), 6-4, and reach the quarterfinals for the second consecutive season.More: Sam Querrey Has Gone from Second Fiddle to Top DogThe comeback is Del Potro's second comeback from two sets down, and his first at a Grand Slam. He came back to defeat Marin Cilic from two sets down in Davis Cup action last season.Del Potro hit just five winners in the first two sets and quickly fell behind 6-1, 4-0 while putting up very little resistance and seeking the attention of medical staff for an undisclosed illness.Seemingly out of contention, The Argentine rallied and poured in 25 winners in the final three sets. He saved two match points with back-to-back aces in the fourth set and later won the tiebreaker to force a decider.
In the fifth set he converted his second match point when Thiem double-faulted.Stay tuned for a full report shortly.
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Chris Oddo is a freelance sportswriter, podcaster, blogger and social media marker who is a lead contributor to Tennisnow.com. He also writes for USOpen.org, Rolandgarros.com, BNPParibasOpen.com, TennisTV.com, WTAtennis.com and the official US Open program.