Wimbledon 2018: 3 Players who stand between Roger Federer and history

The Championships, Wimbledon has run into its second week and Roger Federer looks on course to reach his tenth Wimbledon final. The top seed is yet to drop a set at this year’s tournament. Federer has been in imperious touch and has gotten better with every passing match.

Federer started off with a commanding 6-1, 6-3, 6-4 victory against Dusan Lajovic before producing a masterclass against Lukas Lacko, smashing 48 winners in the process. In the third round, he breezed past Jan-Lenard Struff.

However, his best performance came against the 22nd seeded Frenchman, Adrian Mannarino. He wrapped up the opening set, 6-0 in just 16 minutes and was in cruise control for the entirety of the match. He won the next two sets 7-5 and 6-4 and marched into the quarterfinals.

The strong South African, Kevin Anderson awaits the Swiss maestro in the quarterfinals. Anderson made it to the quarterfinals courtesy a hard-fought victory against the enigmatic Gael Monfils.

The other half of the draw contains Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. Federer has his task cut out if he is to win an unprecedented 9th Wimbledon title. Through this article, we look at the players who could have a say in denying Federer his date with destiny.

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#1 Milos Raonic

The big-serving Canadian has been going about his business quietly this year. He confirmed his spot in the last eight after a well-earned victory against Mackenzie McDonald. In the quarter-final, he will battle another American, John Isner.

Raonic does not boast a very good record against Isner, having won a solitary match out of the four games they’ve played. Raonic, however, has a good record at Wimbledon and would fancy beating Isner to reach the penultimate stage at SW19.

His potential semi-final opponent: a certain Roger Federer. The last time Raonic and Federer met in the semi-finals at Wimbledon was in 2016. Raonic emerged victorious on that occasion in a five-set marathon.

Raonic’s biggest assets are his big serve and damaging forehand. He is a power player and has the capability to blast anyone off the court, on his day. If his ‘serve’ serves him well against Federer, Federer could have a new set of questions to answer.

Raonic would want to take the initiative in the points and finish them off early, thus, denying Federer the chance to move him around the court with his ground-strokes. The key for Raonic would be getting his first serves in and attacking Federer with his ferocious forehand.

The head to head reads 11-3 in Federer’s favour but Raonic would want to make it 11-4 at this year’s Wimbledon and deny Federer his place in tennis folklore.

In the upper half of the draw, Raonic represents the best chance of stopping Federer from making it to the title clash on Sunday.

#2 Novak Djokovic

Novak Djokovic dispatched Karen Khachanov in the fourth round to book his place in the quarterfinals. In the quarters, he would face an old foe in Kei Nishikori. Of the 15 times they’ve met, Djokovic has come out on top on thirteen of those occasions.

Djokovic has slowly but surely played his way into form. Apart from a minor blip against home favourite, Kyle Edmund, he has waltzed through to the quarterfinals.

Djokovic last won a Grand Slam in 2016 when he won in Paris but has been troubled by injuries ever since. If he can fight off a potential semi-final against Nadal, he would want to end Federer’s bid for a 9th Wimbledon title.

Djokovic holds the edge over Federer in the head to head with him winning 23 of the 45 matches they have played. He has also won their previous two meetings.

Against Federer, Djokovic would want to control the game with his ground strokes. When Djokovic enjoyed success against Federer, his most lethal weapon was his cross-court backhand. Federer was forced to defend with his single-handed backhand and this led to errors.

If Djokovic can land his forehands and backhands with surgical precision, he could get his hands on his first Grand Slam for two years.

#3 Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal arrived in London having won a record-extending 11th French Open crown. At Wimbledon, Nadal has continued in the same vein, reaching the quarterfinals without dropping a single set.

He faces a tough opponent in Juan Martin del Potro in the last eight. Nadal has won 10 of the 15 meetings between them. The pair has faced off twice on grass with Nadal getting the better of Del Potro on both occasions. However, with the form Nadal is in, one can expect him to edge past Del Potro into the semis.

A potential clash with Djokovic would lie in wait in the last four. Though Djokovic is slightly ahead in the overall head to head, Nadal has won 2 of their 3 encounters on grass. Looking at history and form, Nadal would be the favourite to go through.

The dream final that many have been waiting for, could actually come to fruition. Nadal has historically had the wood over his old nemesis, Federer. But in recent match-ups, Federer has been able to fend off Nadal and earn victories.

Nadal has always attacked Federer’s backhand with his vicious top-spin forehands. One can expect much of the same if they cross each other’s path in the final. Nadal is also a very good returner of serve and this helps in nullifying the threat posed by Federer’s pinpoint serves.

Of the people left in the draw, Nadal looks the most likely to stand between Federer and his place in history. If Nadal and Federer do face off in the final, we would be in for a treat.

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