Del Potro of Argentina is refusing to give up on tennis despite a series of setbacks and insists he would "love" to compete at next year’s Olympics.

The 32-year-old claimed bronze at London 2012 before securing silver at Rio 2016 where he lost to Britain’s Sir Andy Murray in the men’s singles final.

Hopes of competing in a third Olympics suffered a blow when he injured his knee at the Queen’s Club tournament in London last year.

Del Potro has not played since then, having undergone a third knee operation in August.

But the 2009 US Open champion is focused on returning to action in 2021 as he eyes a place at Tokyo 2020 which has been rescheduled to next year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

"To be honest, it takes a lot for me to make a comeback," said del Potro, as reported by tennishead.net.

"It has become very challenging for me, but I’m not ready to give up.

"I refuse to finish my career outside the court and would love to compete at the Olympic Games in Tokyo next summer.

"The passion for the game is still here, keeping me motivated despite all the troubles.

"I changed the way I hit the ball after several wrist injuries, but I can’t change how I move to help my knees.

"Still, the Tokyo Olympics had been moved to 2021 due to the pandemic, and that gave me extra strength to work on my comeback."

There are 56 direct qualification places in the men’s singles competition based on the world rankings, but only four players can go to the Olympics from each country.

Del Potro is currently ranked 157th in the world, with compatriots Leonardo Mayer, Facundo Bagnis, Federico Coria, Federico Delbonis, Guido Pella and Diego Schwartzman all ahead of him.

Sir Andy, who is on the comeback trail himself following major hip surgery, has also expressed his desire to compete at Tokyo 2020.

The 33-year-old said a third Olympic medal in singles following golds at London 2012 and Rio 2016 was among his goals for the upcoming season.

"It would be in the top few priorities for the year," said Sir Andy.