NADAL ABSENT, BUT DJOKOVIC AND FEDERER HEADLINE STRONG TORONTO DRAW BY RICKY DIMON

Written by: on 3rd August 2014
ATP tournament in Halle
NADAL ABSENT, BUT DJOKOVIC AND FEDERER HEADLINE STRONG TORONTO DRAW BY RICKY DIMON

epa04258752 Swiss tennis player Roger Federer celebrates after winning the final match against Colombia's Alejandro Falla at the ATP tournament in Halle (Westphalia), Germany, 15 June 2014. Federer won the final in straight sets. EPA/OLIVER KRATO  |

Rafael Nadal is out—at least for the next two tournaments—but a strong field will still be on hand for the Rogers Cup in Toronto. Among those back in action for the first time since Wimbledon are Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Stan Wawrinka, and Andy Murray. Canadian fans will be especially hyped for the event thanks to the impressive current form on display from Milos Raonic and Vasek Pospisil. Raonic reached the semifinals at the All-England Club and Pospisil captured the doubles title at the season’s third major. They are also battling each other for the Washington, D.C. title on Sunday in what is the first all-Canadian final in ATP history.

 

Federer may be one of the beneficiaries of Nadal’s withdrawal, and Friday’s draw did him some additional favors. The 17-time Grand Slam champion finds himself in a soft section of the bracket in which his fellow top eight seed is David Ferrer, who has not taken the court since an early exit at Wimbledon. Atlanta champion John Isner, generally at his best this time of year, could pose a threat but would not face Federer until the quarterfinals. Unlike last season, Isner will be well-rested heading into the Rogers Cup after losing his Washington, D.C. opener to Steve Johnson. Federer’s path prior to the quarterfinals is likely to feature Jerzy Janowicz and Marin Cilic. Janowicz is in a massive slump, but an in-form Cilic would be no pushover.

 

The 32-year-old will be debuting his new Wilson ‪#‎RF97‬ racket during in Toronto and throughout the North American hard-court swing.

 

“Very excited and pumped to debut my new Wilson #RF97 racket today,” Federer posted on Twitter earlier this week. “I’ve been looking forward to this moment for awhile!”

 

Potential semifinalists out of the bracket’s third section include Raonic and Tomas Berdych. Last year’s Rogers Cup runner-up, Raonic has to be considered among the tournament favorites on home soil. The sixth seed may kick off his campaign against familiar foe Jack Sock before a possible date with occasional doubles partner Ernests Gulbis, whom Raonic defeated in the 2013 Montreal quarters. Berdych is looking to right the ship after going down to Pospisil in the Washington, D.C. third round. Berdych should cruise through his first match in Toronto en route to a possible meeting with Roberto Bautista Agut, who is 1-1 against the Czech already in 2014.

 

A more difficult top half features Djokovic and Murray in the same quarter. Djokovic should not have much trouble in making it to at least the quarterfinals, as most of his potential early-round adversaries are players he faces often and almost always dominates. The top-ranked Serb will open against either Radek Stepanek or a rusty and possibly injured Gael Monfils. Murray’s eighth is loaded with guys playing great tennis. The eighth-seeded Scot awaits either Wimbledon quarterfinalist Nick Kyrgios or Washington, D.C. quarterfinalist Santiago Giraldo. Potential third-round opponents for Murray are Pospisil, Richard Gasquet, and Ivo Karlovic. Pospisil just beat Gasquet 6-7(5), 6-3, 7-5 in the Washington, D.C. semifinals on Saturday night and they will square off again on Tuesday. Karlovic is already a four-time runner-up in 2014, including final appearances in each of his last two tournaments.

 

Wawrinka, who is partnering Djokovic for doubles in Toronto, is on a collision course with Grigor Dimitrov for the quarterfinals. The Swiss’ draw, not unlike that of his countryman Federer, is a good one. Wawrinka’s nearest seed is a slumping Fabio Fognini, who has never fared particularly well during the U.S. Open Series. Dimitrov’s path to the last eight is tougher on paper, but some of his likely early-round opponents may be feeling the effects of relatively long weeks. Kei Nishikori did not look 100 percent in the Washington, D.C. quarterfinals, Donald Young went all the way to the Washington, D.C. semis, and Dominic Thiem is making a quick trek across the pond after losing Saturday’s Kitzbuhel final to David Goffin.

 

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand.

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