Montreal Masters Draw: Can Novak Djokovic do a three-peat?

Novak Djokovic

Tennis action heats up once again as we say bonjour to one of the oldest and most prestigious tennis tournaments in the whole world – the Canadian Masters.

The last two weeks had offered the perfect starter leading up to the sizzling and delectable main course to be held at the Uniprix Stadium in Montreal. America’s very own John Isner is now the leader in the US Open Series and has a title at Atlanta and a final at Washington DC to boast of.

And, Juan Martin del Potro has brought back flashes of his Grand Slam form as he emerged victorious in the US capital for the third time.

But now the action turns to the big guys at the top. Can defending champion Novak Djokovic brush aside memories of his lethargic display in the Wimbledon final and bring back his ruthless form and insatiable hunger to reign supreme in Canada for the fourth time? After the euphoria of a Wimbledon victory how ready is Andy Murray, the two-time Canadian Masters holder to tackle formidable challenges?

Meanwhile, Rafa Nadal had been in supreme form in the clay season notching up an envious 43-3 record this year. While his Wimbledon result had been a disastrous aberration, Montreal hardcourts will give the two-time champion the perfect opportunity to gauge where he is in his preparation for the US Open.

Montreal will surely miss the two-time winner Roger Federer who opted out of the tournament to rest his ailing back but this will certainly provide a golden chance to the indefatigable David Ferrer, the third seed who has perpetually remained in the shadows of the Fabulous Four.

Nevertheless, it is a draw fraught with dangers for any of the favourites as a lot of the talented players like Tomas Berdych, Jerzy Janowicz and Grigor Dimitrov will be hoping to gatecrash their party.

Also, when Juan Martin del Potro is winning on the American hardcourts, he can be as lethal as possible. Let’s have a look at the four quarters of the draw of the Rogers Cup.

First quarter – Helmed by the man who is gunning for a three-peat, Novak Djokovic, this quarter of the draw looks less threatening when pitted against the other three quarters. The top seed, though, could have an intriguing battle in his opener against potential banana-skin Bernard Tomic. Given the ever-unpredictable Tomic had beaten the Serb in the Hopman Cup this year, things might get interesting but Novak should pull through.

His compatriot Janko Tipsarevic too resides in this part of the draw but his performances off-late have been too insipid to pose any real challenge.

But, the one match to look out for should be the one between the Asian No. 1 Kei Nishikori and French seventh seed Richard Gasquet. Both have won titles this year and look highly motivated to push themselves through.

Semi-finalist – Novak Djokovic

Match to watch – Richard Gasquet v Kei Nishikori (third round).

Second Quarter – Rafa Nadal heads this part of the draw which is riddled with quite a few bumps. Big-hitters and in-form players loom large and if Rafa has to reach the semi-finals, he has his task cut out.

The Spaniard. who is seeking a record 25th ATP Masters crown and has swept past the field in the last two Masters events, has a relatively easy opener in Xavier Malisse or Jesse Levine. His road gets arduous from there with his possible third round opponent being the towering and big-hitting Pole, Jerzy Janowicz, who has been surging the rankings and has reached the Wimbledon semi-finals.

This part of the draw is dotted with enthralling encounters as No. 27 Benoit Paire locks horns with No. 24 Philipp Kohlschreiber in the opening round. Should the ever-unreliable Frenchman reach the second roun,d he will be facing his best friend Stanislas Wawrinka, the second highest seed in the draw.

Meanwhile, Tommy Haas, who has been impressive this season, has a chance to face-off versus fellow single-handed backhander Wawrinka in the third round and that should be as enthralling as it can get. But both unfortunately have an abysmal record against the fourth seed Nadal who is their most likely quarter-final opponent.

Semi-finalist – Rafa Nadal

Matches to watch – Benoit Paire v Philipp Kohlschreiber (first round), Stanislas Wawrinka v Tommy Haas (third round).

Andy Murray

Third quarter – The 2012 Paris Masters champion and the third seed, David Ferrer is the highest seed in this section and needless to say, he has a grand opportunity to make the semi-finals .

Ferrer, at 31, is fit as ever and reached his first Grand Slam final. He will surely be looking forward to build on it. He is expected to brush aside Michael Llodra in the opener and, Gilles Simon should also not impose that much of a menace in the third round.

Meanwhile, Tomas Berdych is the second highest ranked player in this quarter but he has to overcome few obstacles if he dreams of a quarter-final in Canada.

He meets Kevin Anderson for the sixth time this year and even though he has reigned supreme every time, Anderson’s final appearance at Atlanta might just inspire him to put up a credible performance.

The Czech’s third round opponent will be the winner of the match between the in-form John Isner and Nicolas Almagro. If Isner can ward off fatigue after playing for two consecutive weeks, Berdych should have it easier against the Spaniard. But against the other Spaniard – Ferrer, Berdych has a demoralizing record which makes Ferrer the heavy favourite for the semi-finals.

Semi-finalist – David Ferrer

Matches to watch – John Isner v Nicolas Almagro (second round).

Fourth quarter – The Wimbledon champion Andy Murray returns to hardcore action after basking in his incredible success at the All England Club. What’s more important is the road to defending his first Slam – the US Open – begins right here.

As fate would have it, the second seed has been presented with the most loaded section of the draw.

The Briton has a tough second round against the winner of the highly talented Grigor Dimitrov, who put up an encouraging performance in Washington last week, and Marcel Granollers, who won the Kitzbuhel title on clay. Murray’s third round match should also be a delicious one against the dangerous Ernests Gulbis or Marcos Baghdatis who is inching back to the higher echelons after stopping his losing streak in Washington.

But his quarter-final could be a test for survival as he squares up against the dangerous Juan Martin del Potro. The Washington winner has also the Rotterdam indoor title in his resume this year and he should come unscathed against the faltering Milos Raonic, the Canadian No. 1.

The Argentine exuded loads of confidence in his semi-final thriller against Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon and looks eager to continue the amazing run.

Semi-finalist – Juan Martin del Potro

Matches to watch – Andy Murray v Grigor Dimitrov (second round), Andy Murray v Juan Martin del Potro (quarter-finals).

Semi-finals – Novak Djokovic beats Rafael NadalJuan Martin del Potro beats David Ferrer.

Final – Novak Djokovic beats Juan Martin del Potro.