Rafael and Roger Federer in the same half again, possible semi meet up.
With the Madrid final still to play, the Rome action is well under way.
Here is my pick on seed and form as to who they are likely to have to win in order to meet in the semis and progress to a possible final.
Both Nadal and Federer look to have a relatively easy run to the quarterfinals where they could meet David Ferrer and Tomas Berdych respectively. Having said that, Rafa’s first opponent Bellucci is in great form and that could be a big upset in the making…
Rafael Nadal – likely Rome opponents:
First round: bye
Second round: Tomaz Bellucci
Third round: Mikhail Youzhny
Quarter finals: David Ferrer
Semifinals: Roger Federer
Finals: Novak Djokovic
Roger Federer – likely Rome opponents:
First round: bye
Second round: Jo-Wilfred Tsonga
Third round: Richard Gasquet
Quarter finals: Tomas Berdych
Semifinals: Rafael Nadal
Finals: Novak Djokovic
Madrid draw - click to download latest draw from the official website
Rafa and Roger in same half, tough opponents early on.
Well the draw is out and what a hard one it is for our two champions!
Nadal and Federer will have to be ready to play good tennis right from day one.
Here is my pick on seed and form as to who they are likely to have to win in order to meet in the semis and progress to a possible final.
Rafael Nadal – likely Madrid opponents:
First round: bye
Second round: Marcos Baghdatis
Third round: Juan Martin del Potro (or Mikhail Youzhny or Marin Cilic…)
Quarter finals: Jurgen Melzer
Semifinals: Roger Federer
Finals: Novak Djokovic (or Andy Murray)
Roger Federer – likely Madrid opponents:
First round: bye
Second round: Feliciano Lopez
Third round: Fernando Verdasco
Quarter finals: Robin Soderling
Semifinals: Rafael Nadal
Finals: Novak Djokovic (or Andy Murray)
Rafael Nadal’s first match will be on Saturday, March 26 (Session 10) at 8:00 p.m against either Kei Nishikori. Roger Federer will also start on Saturday, against Radek Stepanek.
Rafa and Roger will have to overcome the following theoretical (if goes according to seed) opponents before meeting in the semifinal:
Rafael Nadal:
Kei Nishikori, Juan Ignacio Chela, Jo-Wilfred Tsonga, Tomas Berdych -> Roger Federer
Roger Federer:
Radek Stepanek, Juan Monaco, Michael Youzhny, Andy Roddick -> Rafael Nadal
The new world No. 2, Novak Djokovic is seeded to be the other finalist.
With a “Rafa Slam” or an extension of Fed’s all time Open record at stake, let’s take a look at what each player would have to overcome to reach that Nadal vs Federer final that so many of us are hoping for.
If all goes according to seed, here is how it would go according to the draw (link to full draw here):
Rafael Nadal
Roger Federer
Round 1
Marcos Daniel (96)
Lukas Lacko (99)
- Head to Head
2-0
0-0
Round 2
Daniel Gimeno-Traver (58)
Gilles Simon (41)
- Head to Head
0-0
0-2
Round 3
Feliciano Lopez (32)
Albert Montanes (25)
- Head to Head
6-2
3-1
Round 4
Marin Cilic (15)
Mardy Fish (16)
- Head to Head
0-1
6-1
Quarter Finals
David Ferrer (7)
Andy Roddick (8)
- Head to Head
11-3
20-2
Semifinals
Robin Soderling (4)
Novak Djokovic (3)
- Head to Head
5-2
13-6
Finals
Nadal vs Federer (Head to Head 14-8)
Singles ranking in brackets, Head to head with Nadal or Federer
The main early obstacle for Nadal seems to be the third round where he will face the winner of Marin Cilic or John Isner. Cilic beat Rafa in their only previous meeting.
Federer’s second round match will be a tough one on paper – Gilles Simon beat him in their only earlier encounters, though his form in recent months has not been so predictable.
After that, the semis will probably be where the real work kicks in. Rafa should (on paper) meet Soderling or Murray – two of the best players on hard court over recent years. Federer against Djokovic will also be fascinating.
Let the action begin – and begin it will on Monday 17th January when Roger Federer will play his first round match. He is third on the Rod Laver court, so will probably come on some time after 2pm local time, 1am GMT. Rafael Nadal will have to wait until Tuesday 18th January.
The draw for the US Open has been made and is now available in full on the the US Open website.
I would say that Rafael Nadal definitely has an easier earlier run than Roger Federer.
Rafa starts in the first four rounds against players he has a good success rate against, though Ljubicic did beat him on the hard courts of Indian Wells earlier this year.
Then he has tougher challenges against Verdasco and Murray before a possible final against Federer. Of course beating Murray and Federer is a massive call, but then this IS the US Open .
Roger Federer on the other hand gets some hard opposition from the third round when he will have to battle it out with two players who beat him in their latest encounters (Hewitt and Soderling) as well as an easier Melzer between, before a semi with Djokovic and hopefully a finals date with Rafa.
Well that is the theory, let the mouthwatering reality ensue!
Potential opponents for our champions are as follows (if all goes according to seed):
1. Rafael Nadal, Spain
2. Roger Federer, Switzerland
3. Novak Djokovic, Serbia
4. Andy Murray, Great Britain
5. Robin Soderling, Sweden
6. Nikolay Davydenko, Russia
7. Tomas Berdych, Czech Republic
8. Fernando Verdasco, Spain
9. Andy Roddick, United States
10. David Ferrer, Spain
11. Marin Cilic, Croatia
12. Mikhail Youzhny, Russia
13. Jurgen Melzer, Austria
14. Nicolas Almagro, Spain
15. Ivan Ljubicic, Croatia
16. Marcos Baghdatis, Cyprus
17. Gael Monfils, France
18. John Isner, United States
19. Mardy Fish, United States
20. Sam Querrey, United States
21. Albert Montanes, Spain
22. Juan Carlos Ferrero, Spain
23. Feliciano Lopez, Spain
24. Ernests Gulbis, Latvia
25. Stanislas Wawrinka, Switzerland
26. Thomaz Bellucci, Brazil
27. Fernando Gonzalez, Chile
28. Radek Stepanek, Czech Republic
29. Philipp Kohlschreiber, Germany
30. Juan Monaco, Argentina
31. David Nalbandian, Argentina
32. Lleyton Hewitt, Australia
It was a worthy final at Toronto, with Andy Murray showing he is maturing as a true world class champion, defending his Rogers Cup title with the 7-5, 7-5 win over Roger Federer.
Now the ATP tennis players all pack their bags and take the trip to the Cincinnatti Masters, where another fascinating draw awaits.
The big news for me is that this time Nadal vs Federer would not meet in the final – if they both progress so far, they will play in the semis, whereas Murray and Djokovic would theoretically meet on the other side.
Here are the most probable opponents if all goes to seed:
Rafael Nadal
2nd round: Feliciano Lopez
3rd round: Nicolas Almagro
4th round: Tomas Berdych
Semifinals: Roger Federer
Finals: Novak Djokovic (though Andy Murray would be my form favourite)
Roger Federer
2nd round: James Blake
3rd round: Gael Monfils
4th round: David Ferrer
Semifinals: Rafael Nadal
Finals: Novak Djokovic (or Murray)
The bad news (if you can call it that) is that with 20 of the world’s top 25 in attendance, there are some mighty good players in the path of either player before that potential final.
The semis could feature Rafael Nadal against defending champ Andy Murray, and Roger Federer could have to battle past his rival for Number Two, Novak Djokovic.
Here are the most probable opponents if all goes to form:
Rafael Nadal
2nd round: Stanislas Wawrinka
3rd round: Sam Querrey
4th round: Andy Roddick
Semifinals: Andy Murray
Finals: Roger Federer
Roger Federer
2nd round: Alejandro Falla
3rd round: Nicolas Almagro
4th round: Tomas Berdych
Semifinals: Novak Djokovic
Finals: Rafael Nadal
The Wimbledon 2010 draw has just been held, and of our two Number One’s, Roger Federer was given the tougher draw.
Roger’s going to have to get past some really hard grass court players if he is to achieve a record-equaling seventh Wimbledon title.
The biggest three obstacles for Federer are:
- Andy Roddick (last year’s finalist)
- Novak Djokovic (world number three)
- Lleyton Hewitt (former world number one, Wimbledon champion, and victor over Federer in last week’s Halle final.
Rafael Nadal has probably two serious contenders if he is to reach a final and challenge to repeat his 2008 title:
- Andy Murray – world number four and home crowd favourite
- Robin Soderling – in form Roland Garros finalist
Federer will start on Monday against Colombia’s 65th-ranked Alejandro Falla. He has never lost a set in the four previous occasions he has played Falla, the most recent win being last week at Halle.
Nadal will plays Kei Nishikori first up – they have met only once before, at Queens in 2008, when Nadal managed to win, despite dropping a set against the young Japanese promise.
So who is your pick for the Wimbledon Championships 2010?
I’m going to be gunning for a Federer vs Nadal final (surprise!).
If both make it that far, I seriously believe it will come down to determination, endurance and that Rafa will take it out 3 sets to 1.
Suspect I might regret being so brave before the tourney even starts .
So can anyone stop the world’s best ever tennis player from meeting history’s best ever clay court player in the Roland Garros final.
Again, the form, results, talent and sheer power and five-set endurance of Rafael Nadal make him the runaway favourite.
It is clear though that he has a tough draw – with some serious clay court challengers to see off in the early rounds.
He could face (amongst others) the Aussie battler Hewitt, the veteran Croat Ljubicic, in form Spaniard Almagro and/or Fernando Gonzalez by quarter final time, not to mention the extremely talented Fernando Verdasco.
If he sees off all those guys, then he could come up against Roddick, Ferrer, Ferrero or Djokovic before reaching the final. A lot of potential banana skins there!
Federer, on the other hand, comes into this as underdog but he has improved continuously over recent weeks, and will be keen to prove he can win in Paris with or without the man from Manacor in front of him.
He’ll have to beat some good players too in the early rounds – particularly Tipsarevic, Feliciano Lopez, Monfils, Cilic, the really promising Gulbis and his fellow Fed toppler Montanes, and last but not least the man who knocked Rafa out in the 4th round last year, Robin Soderling.
If he reaches the semis, he could face Murray, Youzhny or Tsonga before the finals day.
So what do you think?
Are our main men Roger and Rafa truly unbeatable or do you see the chance of upsets, and if so, who are the big threats?
Rafael and Roger Federer in the same half again, possible semi meet up.
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