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The 51st edition of the Swiss Indoors will be held from October 24-30 and the draw for the same has been revealed. The ATP 500 event is part of the tennis circuit once again after a gap of three years.
World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz arrives in Basel as the top seed. The youngster has catapulted to global superstardom with his results and will look to build upon his already impressive season. Casper Ruud, who lost to the teenager in the US Open final, is also competing here and is seeded second.
Felix Auger-Aliassime and Marin Cilic are seeded third and fourth respectively. Grand Slam champions Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka are also in contention, along with plenty of other in-form players.
On that note, let's take a look at how the Swiss Indoors draw could play out over the next few days:
Top half: Felix Auger-Aliassime looks to topple Carlos Alcaraz at Swiss Indoors
Seeded Players: (1) Carlos Alcaraz, (3) Felix Auger-Aliassime, (5) Pablo Carreno Busta, (8) Lorenzo Musetti.
Expected semifinal: Carlos Alcaraz vs Felix Auger-Aliassime.
Dark Horse: Marc-Andrea Huesler.
Carlos Alcaraz kept everyone on the edge of their seats with his results and matches. He won title after title and ultimately claimed his maiden Grand Slam title at the US Open. Since then, he has competed in just one tournament, the Astana Open, where he lost in the first round.
Alcaraz has now returned to action and has been drawn against Jack Draper in the first round. The Brit is having a breakthrough season of his own. Following an injury layoff, he returned to action at the European Open but lost in the second round. At his best, he certainly has the potential to challenge the Spaniard, but that's unlikely to happen now.
The Spaniard could meet either Adrian Mannarino or Botic van de Zandschulp in the second round and should be able to get past either to make the last eight. His potential quarterfinal opponents include Pablo Carreno Busta and Maxime Cressy, but both have been going through a rough patch of late and shouldn't give him much trouble.
Felix Auger-Aliassime recently won his second career title at the Firenze Open. He's currently in the semifinals of the European Open and will take on Richard Gasquet for a place in the title round. The Canadian's first-round opponent at the Swiss Indoors is Marc-Andrea Huesler, who won the Sofia Open last month.
Auger-Aliassime could meet either Miomir Kecmanovic or Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the second round, and both are challenging players. If he's able to get past this round, he'll reach the quarterfinals. The Canadian's likely opponents at this stage could be Lorenzo Musetti and Alexander Bublik.
Auger-Aliassime is playing well at the moment and has the potential to go beyond the quarterfinals, but faces a challenging draw.
Bottom half: Casper Ruud gunning for his first ATP 500 title at Swiss Indoors
Seeded Players: (2) Casper Ruud, (4) Marin Cilic, (6) Roberto Bautista Agut, (7) Alex de Minaur.
Expected semifinal: Casper Ruud vs Marin Cilic.
Dark Horse: Holger Rune.
Casper Ruud has had a career-best season so far with a couple of runner-up finishes at the Majors, three titles and a career-high ranking of No. 2. However, he's yet to win a title above the ATP 250 level. He'll try to capture his first one at the Swiss Indoors but faces Stan Wawrinka in the opening round here.
The three-time Grand Slam champion was making some progress before an injury derailed his momentum. If he's back to his best, he could certainly give Ruud a run for his money. If he's able to get past the Swiss, he could potentially meet Brandon Nakashima in the second round. A win over the American would put the second seed into the quarterfinals.
Roberto Bautista Agut will commence his campaign against a qualifier. He'll face the winner of the match between Sebastian Korda and Andy Murray. The young American recently defeated the former World No. 1 in the quarterfinals of the Gijon Open and will be the favorite to make the last eight from here, where Ruud awaits.
Based on their form, Korda will have the edge against Ruud should they meet in the quarterfinals. 2014 US Open champion Marin Cilic was also drawn against a qualifier in the first round and could be up against Mackenzie McDonald in the second round, with the winner moving on to the last eight.
Alex de Minaur will face Holger Rune in the first round after losing a tight three-set match against him in the semifinals of the Stockholm Open. The teenager has reached his third final of the year in the Swedish capital. The winner is likely to take on Jenson Brooksby in the second round.
A win against the American would lead to the quarterfinals. Rune seems to be the most in-form player in this section and should at least make it to the last eight. He could find himself facing Cilic once there and given how he has played recently, he could score an upset win over the veteran.
Semifinal predictions:
Felix Auger-Aliassime def. Carlos Alcaraz.
Sebastian Korda def. Holger Rune.
Prediction for the Swiss Indoors final: Felix Auger-Aliassime def. Sebastian Korda.
