Luckless Juan Martin del Potro withdraws from Queen’s as injury curse strikes again

Juan Martin del Potro is out of Queen’s after injuring his knee in his first round win over Denis Shapovalov, throwing his Wimbledon participation in doubt.

The Argentinian was only playing his fifth tournament of the season so far when he appeared to slip on the wet surface and jar his knee.

It’s unknown at this stage whether or not the injury is the same knee in which Del Potro fractured at the Shanghai Masters in November, but he appears to be taking no chances.

“Juan Martin del Potro finished his first round match with pain and swelling around his right knee after slipping close to the net in the eighth game of the second set.” Agent Jorge Viale said in a statement after the match.

“In the next few hours, medical studies will be carried out to determine the degree of injury.”

And, right enough, Queen’s tournament director Stephen Farrow later confirmed the Argentinian would not be going any further in the competition.

“It is a great shame that Juan Martin has been forced to withdraw,” Farrow said on Twitter.

“The crowd loves him here, just as they do all over the world. We wish him a full and speedy recovery, and hope to see him back here next year.”

Del Potro’s withdrawal means that Feliciano Lopez will receive a walkover into the quarter-finals.

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