"This photo says it all," wrote Juan Martin del Potro on his Instagram page. Earlier that Wednesday, on Centre Court at Wimbledon, the Argentinian had lost to Rafael Nadal after being up by two sets to one.

Their quarterfinal match would rage on for nearly five hours, finishing in the waning daylight:

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The 7-5, 6-7 (7), 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 epic ended with an embrace, after Nadal walked over to Del Potro's side as he lay on the grass after losing his footing.

"After almost five hours match, I fell down. I wanted to stay there for all night long," Del Potro said. "But Rafa cames to me and we made a big hug, and it was kind of him."

The unforgiving match had sent Del Potro tumbling to the grass on more than one occasion.

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While Nadal put in so much effort he literally ran out of court space.

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The fans in that section of the court didn't mind:

Nadal advances to his first Wimbledon semifinal since 2011. He'll take on Novak Djokovic, while the other semifinal will see big servers Kevin Anderson and John Isner.

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Del Potro and Nadal
share a hug after 
their Wimbledon epic

Del Potro and Nadal share a hug after their Wimbledon epic

Strokes of Genius is a world-class documentary capturing the historic 13-year rivalry between tennis icons Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. It is timed for release as the anticipation crests with Roger as returning champion, 10 years after their famed 2008 Wimbledon championship – an epic match so close and so reflective of their competitive balance that, in the end, the true winner was the sport itself.

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