DJOKOVIC, NADAL ON US OPEN COLLISION COURSE

Written by: Staff on 28th August 2015

DJOKOVIC, NADAL ON US OPEN COLLISION COURSE |

Novak Djokovic practicing at the 2015 US Open. Photo by @tennis_phil via Instagram.

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic is in the same quarter of the US Open draw as eighth seed Rafael Nadal. Roger Federer, the five-time former champion, could potentially face Andy Murray or Stan Wawrinka in the semi-finals.

Djokovic is attempting to capture his third Grand Slam championship crown of 2015 by adding to his US Open 2011 crown. Starting with a 50-9 record at Flushing Meadows, the Serbian begins his campaign for a 10th major against Joao Souza. He would potentially need to beat Vasek Pospisil, No. 25 seed Andreas Seppi and No. 14 seed David Goffin prior to a clash against Nadal.

Nadal, the 2010 and 2013 champion, is also in the top quarter of the draw. Nadal leads Djokovic 22-20 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series, having met in eight Grand Slam finals, but Djokovic won their last match in the Roland Garros quarter-finals. Nadal will first need to get past talented teenager Borna Coric, who beat him in the 2014 Basel quarter-finals. He could potentially face 10th seed Milos Raonic in the fourth round, ahead of a clash against Djokovic.

Defending champion Marin Cilic, who beat Kei Nishikori 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 in the 2014 final, have been drawn in the same quarter. Ninth seed Cilic will first face a qualifier, but Grigor Dimitrov (third round) and 2007 and 2012 semi-finalist David Ferrer, the seventh seed (fourth round), loom large. Fourth seed Nishikori, who will be hoping to improve on his 13-6 tournament record, takes on Benoit Pairein the first round, with No. 26 seed Tommy Robredo a possible third-round opponent.

In the bottom half of the draw, second seed Federer starts his bid for an 18th Grand Slam championship crown against Leonardo Mayer, who memorably failed to convert five match points against the Swiss in last year’s Shanghai Rolex Masters second round. Federer, who was a six-time US Open finalist between 2004 and 2009, has a 72-10 match record at the final Grand Slam championship of the year.

Federer will potentially face sixth seed Tomas Berdych in the quarter-finals. Berdych, a 2012 semi-finalist, who reached quarter-finalists at 10 of his first 11 tournaments this year, could meet No. 12 seed Richard Gasquet in the third round. In a tasty opener, Gasquet will challenge Thanasi Kokkinakis at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

Murray, the 2012 champion, is pitted to meet Nick Kyrgios for the third time at a Grand Slam this year. The third-seeded Scot, who overcame Kyrgios in straight sets at the Australian Open and Roland Garros, will be hoping to improve on quarter-final runs over the past two years. The champion in Paris, Wawrinka, the fifth seed and a 2013 semi-finalist, will first face Albert Ramos-Vinolas. He may meet 11th seed Gilles Simon in the fourth round

Courtesy of the ATP and Original Link – http://www.atpworldtour.com/en/news/us-open-2015-draw-preview-djokovic-federer

Topics: 2015 U.S. Open, Andreas Seppi, Andy Murray, Atp World Tour, Benoit Paire, Borna Coric, David Ferrer, David Goffin, Gilles Simon, GRIGOR DIMITROV, Joao Souza, Kei Nishikori, Marin Cilic, milos raonic, Nick Krygios, Novak Djokovic, Rafa Nadal, Richard Gasquet, Roger Federer, Sports, Stan Wawrinka, Tennis News, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Tomas Berdych, Tommy Robredo, Vasek Pospisil

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10sBalls_com says:

August 28, 2015 at 8:48 am

-@DjokerNole, @RafaelNadal ON @usopen COLLISION COURSE- http://t.co/PkM51wKrrF #Nadal #Djokovic #USOpen2015 #tennis
Dimonator says:

August 28, 2015 at 10:13 am

RT @10sBalls_com: -@DjokerNole, @RafaelNadal ON @usopen COLLISION COURSE- http://t.co/PkM51wKrrF #Nadal #Djokovic #USOpen2015 #tennis