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Heading into their fourth round match at Australian Open 2010, not much separated Juan Martin del Potro and Marin Cilic. Both are 198cm tall, while the Argentine is one kilogram heavier than the Croatian. They were even born just five days apart in 1988. As such, it was fitting that they should be split by so little in their tennis, with Cilic edging out the more favoured Argentine over five tough sets, 5-7 6-4 7-5 5-7 6-3, to advance to the quarter-finals.

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Del Potro, the reigning US Open champion and the No.4 seed here, has been hyped as the man leading the challenge against Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal’s dominance over the men’s game. Rumours of a wrist injury had dampened some expectations, but he still loomed as a genuine contender at this year’s Australian Open.

Enter the towering 14th-seeded Cilic. Having won his second consecutive Chennai Open, Cilic began 2010 in strong form. In progressing this far, he had fought through a five-set, late-night thriller against Australian teenager Bernard Tomic, then impressively knocked out the highly-rated Stanislas Wawrinka. Despite all this, it seemed that del Potro had the weapons and movement to push deep into the second week.

The opening set saw each man struggle to make any inroads into the other’s serve. When del Potro did finally land the decisive break, it was with some assistance – a Cilic double fault. Shortly afterwards, del Potro closed the set with an ace, seemingly with plenty in the tank.

After the early stages of the second set progressed in a similar vein, a number of del Potro errors in quick succession handed Cilic set points, which were gleefully accepted. Increasing his approaches to the net, the Croat was able to take the game up to his more-fancied opponent, and he levelled at one set-all.

Cilic had begun to look the more dangerous of two, with the Argentine appearing sluggish in his movement. Calling a medical timeout after losing the second set, del Potro received treatment on a foot injury rather than his much-talked-about wrist.

The Croatian continued his dominance at the net, a sensational drop volley giving him set points after del Potro became aggravated at repeated crowd interruptions. Cilic duly converted to take an epic 86-minute third set, and the possibility of a boilover appeared increasingly likely.

Even when not at his best, del Potro remains an outstanding ball striker, and in the 11th game of the fourth set was able to break Cilic to love. His forehand began to find its range, and as he sent the match to a fifth and final set, momentum seemed to shift in favour of the now fired-up Argentine.

With both players having endured five-set matches already in the tournament, fatigue had now well and truly set in. The contest was reduced to a slugfest, with Cilic making just eight of his 67 net approaches for the match in the final set. A wayward del Potro forehand gave Cilic the crucial break, before he saved break points of his own with an ace. Another long del Potro forehand gave Cilic a well-earned victory over four hours and 38 minutes.

Cilic’s work at the net and 21 more winners became the difference between a second successive Grand Slam quarter-final appearance and an early flight home, while del Potro, who came to Melbourne with great expectations, will leave outplayed and out-thought.

Fast facts
- Cilic made 71 unforced errors, while del Potro had 58.
- The Croatian won 82 per cent of points when he landed his first serve; del Potro was successful on 72 per cent of his.
- Cilic won 41 points at the net, while del Potro won 13.