Murray, Nishikori On Cincy QF Collision Course
Murray, Nishikori On Cincy QF Collision Course
Nishikori, Raonic stand in Murray’s path to final
World No. 2 Andy Murray returns to Cincinnati next week bidding to capture a third Western & Southern Open title. The Scot – a champion in 2008 and 2011 (d. Djokovic both years) – faces a tough route if he is to recapture the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 crown in Ohio with No.5 seed Kei Nishikori a likely quarter-final opponent and fourth seed Milos Raonic slated to meet him in the semi-finals.
His projected final opponent, second seed Stan Wawrinka had his best result in Cincinnati in 2012 when he fell to countryman Roger Federer in the semi-finals. Wawrinka will likely have to find a way past No. 7 seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarter-finals before a showdown with 2013 champion, No. 3 seed Rafael Nadal, in the semi-finals. Nadal has claimed 15 of 18 FedEx ATP Head2Head clashes with the World No. 4 in the Emirates ATP Rankings.
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Murray opens his campaign against either this week’s Abierto Mexicano Tenis Mifel finalist Ivo Karlovic or Argentine Juan Monaco in the second round. He has never lost to 37-year-old Karlovic in seven career meetings, however has fallen to Monaco twice in five matches. French No. 13 seed Richard Gasquet is drawn to meet him in the third round.
Wawrinka, meanwhile, will begin against either #NextGen American wild card Jared Donaldson or Spanish former World No. 9 Nicolas Almagro. He has never faced Donaldson and boasts a 6-3 FedEx ATP Head2Head record against Almagro. His third-round opponent would likely be this week’s Abierto Mexicano Tenis Mifel finalist Feliciano Lopez, or former Top 10 players Gilles Simon or Grigor Dimitrov.
Third seed Nadal, who fell to Lopez in the third round in Cincinnati last year, faces either Pablo Cuevas or Sam Querrey in the second round with a trio of #NextGen players – 14th seed Nick Kyrgios, Lucas Pouille and Borna Coric – potential third-round obstacles. Sixth seed Tomas Berdych is drawn to meet the Spaniard in what would be the pair’s 23rd FedEx ATP Head2Head encounter. Nadal has won 19 of those matches.
A semi-finalist in 2014, fourth seed Raonic faces a tricky start to his Western & Southern Open campaign against either Italian Fabio Fognini or fellow big-server John Isner. Eighth seeded #NextGen star Dominic Thiem or French No. 9 seed Gael Monfils would be his expected quarter-final opponent.
Seven-time champion Roger Federer and five-time finalist Novak Djokovic will be missing from Cincinnati due to injuries.