ROGER FEDERER IS LOOKING FOR FOUR STRAIGHT TITLES IN HALLE, JOINED BY NISHIKORI, THIEM, AND FERRER & 10SBALLS_COM

Written by: Staff on 12th June 2016

ROGER FEDERER IS LOOKING FOR FOUR STRAIGHT TITLES IN HALLE, JOINED BY NISHIKORI, THIEM, AND FERRER & 10SBALLS_COM

epa05356829 Switzerland's Roger Federer returns the ball to Dominic Thiem of Austria during their semi final match of the ATP tennis tournament at the Weissenhof in Stuttgart, Germany, 11 June 2016. EPA/MARIJAN MURAT |

By Ricky Dimon

Roger Federer’s 2016 grass-court campaign began with a three-set semifinal loss to Dominic Thiem at the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart. One week later, a rematch could be in the cards for the Gerry Weber Open final. But countless other players will have something to say about that, as a strong field also features Kei Nishikori, Tomas Berdych, David Goffin, and David Ferrer.

“You’re always a little bit disappointed when you lose any match with match points, but I don’t think I did anything wrong up to that point,” Federer said after falling to Thiem 3-6, 7-6(7), 6-4, unable to capitalize on two match points in the second-set tiebreaker. “It was a good match from both of us in tough conditions. I was pleased with how I played. I think I can play better in some big moments, but he came up with some really good shots when he needed it. I’ve just got to keep working hard and it’s going to go my way the next time around.”

Swiss tennis player Roger Federer celebrates winning against Andreas Seppi from Italy during their final match at the ATP tournament in Halle, Germany 21 June 2015. EPA/MAJA HITIJ

Things almost always go away in Halle. Federer is an incredible 51-5 lifetime at this event, including an outrageous 44-2 clip in his last 46 matches. He has captured eight titles dating back to his first one in 2003. The 17-time Grand Slam winner is the three-time defending champion in Halle and he is aiming to win four in a row for the second time (previously 2003-2006).

Following what should be a routine trek through two rounds, Federer could meet Goffin in the quarterfinals. The 11th-ranked Belgian is playing the best tennis of his career right now, but a victory over the Swiss maestro on grass (if Federer is close to 100 percent physically) would be a major upset. Berdych, Alexander Zverev, and Marcos Baghdatis are part of the draw’s up-for-grabs second section.

In the bottom half of the bracket, baseliners Nishikori and Ferrer are on a collision course for the last eight. That’s a matchup more accustomed to 500-point finals, but Ferrer has fallen out of the top 10 and thus finds himself with the sixth seed. Grass is by far Nishikori’s worst surface, so the door to the title match could be open for Ferrer, Thiem, Philipp Kohlschreiber, or Ivo Karlovic. Thiem and Kohlschreiber, who are battling each other for the Stuttgart trophy, may collide again in the Halle quarters.

One potential first-round upset to watch for is Zverev over Viktor Troicki. This would only be an upset according to ranking, as current form obviously favors the 19-year-old German. He is 23-14 this season and has not lost a first-round match at any tournament since drawing Murray at the Australian Open. Although Zverev is a relative grass-court novice, he played well enough on the surface in 2015. In his first grass tournament as a professional, he lost to Troicki 6-3, 6-7(6), 6-3 last summer in Stuttgart. Fast forward 12 months and Zverev should be ready to turn the tide.