Juan Martin del Potro has been out of the game a long time.

A very long time.

None of the top pros in the game has ever had such a lengthy break from the game.  del Potro basically played the Australian Open, and that was it.  He hasn’t been back since.  He had wrist surgery around March and then didn’t start practicing until about August.

There was hope that del Potro would return to defend his US Open title, but he, instead, decided to play in Bangkok.  Bangkok starts the Asian swing.  Many fans start ignoring the tennis season after the US Open, but the pros keep playing.  Last year, Sam Querrey was looking to build on a successful summer when a freak accident in Bangkok nearly derailed his career.  Sitting on a glass table to avoid a sweaty chair that he sat on, Querrey fell through and cut his arm, nearly severing a nerve that may have instant retirement.

Having seen Nadal injured over the years and come back, one knows that it’s tough to take 2-3 months off and come back, often a touch rusty, and then usually getting to form in a few weeks.  Nikolay Davydenko has come back from injury several times, but he often takes more time getting his form back.  Indeed, arguably, Davydenko is still struggling with his game, which is too bad, because he had hit a peak in his playing starting after the US Open and working his way to this year’s Australian Open.

More than likely, del Potro won’t be able to get back to form very quickly.  He is slated to meet Nadal in the quarterfinals should both make it that far, but it’s hard to believe del Potro is ready to meet Nadal, and even ready to make it to the quarterfinals.

In any case, it’s good to see del Potro back after almost a year, and it’ll be nicer yet, to see him return to the form that made him a threat to be a top 3 player.