Talking tactics: Why Del Potro couldn't master Djokovic like he did Nadal in Shanghai

Del Potro didn’t for one moment face such pressure in the semis as Nadal stood deeper in the court, as he normally does while receiving, which allowed Del Potro to get the big serve followed by the first strike in to take control of the point.

He even won 9 out of 13 total second serve points in the two sets against Nadal, which goes to show how untroubled he was with the world number 1’s returns. And while holding his own fort, he was giving Nadal a torrid time whenever the latter missed his primary delivery.

In the second set of the final, the tables were turned. The loss of the first set in such comfortable fashion sort of freed up Del Potro as he looked more relaxed in the second and that translated into his game as well.

Djokovic’s first serve percentage dropped to 58% in the second, allowing Del Potro the opportunity to sneak in to grab the crucial break. That, and a crazy sequence of events that saw Djokovic slip-shodding all over the court on his groundstrokes.

The Serb also won just half of the points on his second serve. Del Potro too struggled on his second delivery (44% points won), but had only 9 second serves to 23 first serves, on which he lost just four points.

Ironically, Del Potro faced more break points (3 as compared to 1 by Djokovic), but he saved all of them with some timely big serves and solid shot-making. He also varied his serve by opting for more serves out wide, especially on the deuce court, that kept Djokovic guessing.

The third set saw both players serve really well. Djokovic bumped up his first serve percentage to 66%, winning 88% of those points, while Del Potro sent down an impressive 81% first serves in, winning 63%.

The numbers here are a little misleading, though; while Del Potro served a higher number of first serves, the distribution was less. Conversely Djokovic, despite serving a lower percentage, got more variety, keeping Del Potro stretched, as he lost just three points on his first delivery and only eight points overall. He held his serve in quick time and managed to exert all the pressure on Del Potro who was at a disadvantage serving behind in the decider.

The Argentine had also started to fade a bit physically and he managed to win just 8 of 38 points while returning the Djokovic serve. The Serb had twice that number.

Depth of shot

Juan Martin Del Potro bludgeoned Rafael Nadal into the ground in his semi-final match

In the semi-final against Nadal, Del Potro managed to bully the Spaniard into submission. The weight of the shots flowing from Del Potro’s racquet, specially the forehand, managed to inflict some body blows to Nadal.

Nadal’s serve is not at the same level as Djokovic’s, and this was an area that Del Potro exploited to the fullest. Despite serving a healthy 71% first serve in the first set and 70% in the second, Nadal hardly managed to trouble Del Potro, who managed to get the first big strike in the rally before his opponent could more often than not.

It was not just the pace of the shot, but the depth in particular that buried Nadal in the semis. The Spaniard simply could not live with Del Potro from the back of the court as he punished him for dropping the ball short.

Each of Del Potro’s shots was so close to the baseline that it never allowed Nadal to go on the attack and all he could do was put the ball back in the court. That’s how he dominated the rallies and ran Nadal ragged, making him run from corner to corner.