To the delight of many tennis fans, Juan Martin Del Potro will face Denis Kudla in Delray Beach on Tuesday.  The excitement of most is not regarding this particular matchup in the Florida tournament, but Del Potro’s return to the sport after a long absence due to injury.

It has been a struggle for the forgotten Grand Slam champion, who has seen only limited action since 2014 after a pair of surgeries on his left wrist. However, Del Potro’s woes actually began shortly after earning his maiden major title at the U. S. Open in 2009. A right wrist injury, which required surgery, sidelined him for much of the following season and set forth his unfortunate chain of adversity. Nonetheless, after much rehabilitation, he appeared to work his way back and strung together some success prior to facing his most recent setbacks. In 2012, Del Potro would defeat Novak Djokovic to win Olympic bronze in London, and he eliminated the Serb in the semifinals of Indian Wells in 2013. Additionally, he would twice better Roger Federer in the final of his home tournament in Basel to capture those titles in 2012 and 2013. Del Potro continued to underscore his ability to crash the “Big Four” (as it was known then) stranglehold on the game, finding success against the best in the world while taking 11 titles during this time period. But this came to a screeching halt as Del Potro has only competed in six events since early 2014, with his most recent attempt at a return coming at Miami in March of last year.

At the 2009 U. S. Open, Del Potro defeated Rafael Nadal and Federer in consecutive matches to win the championship at just 20 years of age. With both of those great champions in their prime at that time, many now ponder what might have been had he stayed healthy. Now 27 years old and looking to pick up the pieces of his career, Del Potro is happy to return to the sport but has decided to proceed with caution prior to this version of his comeback. “I know you are anxious to see me play, but I ask you for patience,” he recently said.

Patience aside, if Del Potro can stay healthy and regain his past form, there is still time to make an impact in the sport. With 10 of the current top 15 players either 30 or older, or reaching the milestone by early summer, the Argentine will enter the mix with plenty of tread left on his tires, having spent so much time away from competition. Of course, the million-dollar question is whether his wrist has properly healed this go around, or will it be his undoing once more? It would stand to reason that another misfortune, coupled with significant time away from the court, could end any hope of a return to his past form. Perhaps this explains the warning of patience that came with this comeback.

If we dare to disregard patience and get ahead of ourselves, at the top of his game Del Potro found some success against the best players in the world, and a return to his peak would certainly add an interesting element to the game as so many of the greats continue to age out. As fans search for the next great rising stars who might be future champions, Del Potro is entering his prime age and has a body of work to stand on. He might still have something to give, if he finally maintains his health.

Regardless, it is good for the sport to have the towering Argentine back on the court once more. And though he returns ranked No. 1041 in the world, it would only take the ability to stay healthy and play tournaments to quickly bolt back towards the top. With no points to defend, it should be a quick rise with some good fortune in regards to his health.