Juan Martin del Potro is hoping that his friendship with Lionel Messi can grow now that his fellow Argentine is also based in Miami. The former world No 3 tennis player said the MLS star deserves to enjoy himself at Inter Miami after “suffering” in his bid to win the World Cup. And he has one key piece of advice for Messi when it comes to life in Miami – wear plenty of sunscreen.

Del Potro has been learning to find a routine without tennis, having played his most recent match in February of last year and is unofficially retired. The 34-year-old is still struggling to live with a knee injury that he picked up towards the end of 2018 and re-aggravated shortly after mounting a comeback in 2019.

He now has a base in Miami, meaning that the arrival of fellow Argentine Messi has been great news for the 22-time title winner, who said it “meant a lot” to have the footballing legend nearby. “I’m getting used to being at home every day. I don’t have any specific routine day by day because I’m not training. So I’m trying to discover by myself this part of the life, which is pretty new for me,” Del Potro told Tennis.com while discussing life away from tennis.

“Tennis will end one day and then the life continues. I’m excited to see what is next for me. I’m living without pressure now. And, for me, it’s a very good way to manage my daily life. I enjoy a lot being close with my family, being in Argentina, and spending time in Miami, too. I like the way of the life in Miami now. We have Messi here, which means something special for all the Argentinian people living there.”

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Asked if he hopes that Messi being in Miami means they can strengthen their bond, the 2009 US Open champion replied: “I [would] love to. Being close to Messi for Argentinian people means a lot. We will hopefully have time to hang out in the future. He just arrived. He’s trying to adapt to the new club, the new colleagues, the new house, different life. And he has three kids.”

And Del Potro explained why it means so much to see Messi in the MLS after spending years trying to win the World Cup for his home nation. “But, for me, it’s so nice watching him playing in this league. He’s always smiling and he looks very, very happy,” the tennis star added.