DELRAY BEACH, Fla. — Eleven months was long enough for Juan Martín del Potro to ponder whether he wanted to attempt another comeback from wrist surgery. One match into his return from his fourth wrist operation, he appears satisfied with his decision.
But after a 6-1, 6-4 victory over Denis Kudla on Tuesday night at the Delray Beach Open, del Potro was not thinking too far ahead — only to his second-round match against the Australian qualifier John-Patrick Smith on Thursday. Tuesday’s win was del Potro’s first match since last March and only his fifth since April 2014.