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Who Federer and Djokovic will have to beat to win Wimbledon as Nadal negotiates nightmare draw


Who will win the title? (Picture: Getty/Metro)

The Wimbledon draw has been officially made and there are some stunning matches on offer.

A mini-row over the seeding formula, which saw Roger Federer rise above Rafael Nadal to become the No. 2 seed, became virtually irrelevant as they both landed in the opposite half to world No. 1 Novak Djokovic.

That said, Nadal may be left slightly annoyed by the fact he as third seed has been handed a nightmare draw, which includes a mouth-watering potential second-round clash with Nick Kyrgios.

Here we take a look at the players the ‘Big Three’ – who have shared the last 10 majors between them – could face on their way to glory.

Novak Djokovic

Novak Djokovic is looking to win a fifth Wimbledon (Picture: Any Chance/Getty Images)

The defending champion faces a tricky opener against a man who has already beaten him this year.

Germany’s Philipp Kohlschreiber, a former quarter-finalist in these parts, famously upset the Serb at Indian Wells earlier this season and Djokovic will need to be locked in from the word go.

His title defence will likely continue against American Denis Kudla, who reached round four in 2015, while former top-10 Latvian Ernests Gulbis willl perhaps fancy his chances of a run to the third round.

Felix Auger-Aliassime has impressed on grass and if he comes through a tough opener against his compatriot Vasek Pospisil, he could make a run to the last-16 to meet Djokovic.



Novak Djokovic potential route to Wimbledon glory

R1: Kohlschreiber
R2: Kudla
R3: Gulbis
R4: Auger-Aliassime
QF: Tsitsipas
SF: Zverev
F: Federer

Big things are expected of Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas and he will likely battle it out with Russian rival Daniil Medvedev – who he is yet to beat – for a spot in the quarter-finals.

The other quarter in the top half is the weakest of the four, with no clear favourite to emerge.

Milos Raonic and Kevin Anderson would usually be solid choices but both have suffered with injuries this year so the door is surely open for Alexander Zverev to make a first Grand Slam semi-final.

Given Nadal’s tough draw, it’s hard to look beyond Federer reaching the final.



Wimbledon winners since 2003

2003: Federer d. Philippoussis
2004: Federer d. Roddick
2005: Federer d. Roddick
2006: Federer d. Nadal
2007: Federer d. Nadal
2008: Nadal d. Federer
2009: Federer d. Roddick
2010: Nadal d. Berdych
2011: Djokovic d. Nadal
2012: Federer d. Murray
2013: Murray d. Djokovic
2014: Djokovic d. Federer
2015: Djokovic d. Federer
2016: Murray d. Raonic
2017: Federer d. Cilic
2018: Djokovic d. Anderson

Rafael Nadal

Nadal has a tough draw, no? (Picture: AFP/Getty Images)

The two-time winner starts against Japan’s Yuichi Sugita but the focus will already be firmly on a potential clash with Kyrgios in round two.

Kyrgios famously called Nadal ‘salty’ in an interview earlier this year and no doubt the Spaniard will relish the chance to exact revenge on the Aussie, who defeated him in Acapulco this season.

Things won’t get much easier for the world No. 2 should he find a way past Kyrgios, Canada’s Denis Shapovalov is a potential third round opponent, although Jo-Wilfried Tsonga is also a decent bet to get there.



Nadal potential route to Wimbledon glory

R1: Sugita
R2: Kyrgios
R3: Shapovalov
R4: Cilic
QF: Simon
SF: Federer
F: Djokovic

A last-16 tie with Marin Cilic is also incredibly tough. Cilic is a former runner-up at the All England Club and beat Nadal in an exhibition at The Hurlingham Club on Wednesday.

There’s no standout potential quarter-final opponent but Gilles Simon impressed en route to the final at Queen’s and will fancy his chances.

From then on, it should be the usual suspects in the form of Federer and Djokovic.

Roger Federer

Federer is chasing a ninth Wimbledon title (Picture: Kyodo News via Getty Images)

Chasing a record ninth Wimbledon title, Federer will probably be the happiest of the three with his draw.

He will face a first meeting with Llyod Harris in round one, while he could meet British No. 4 Jay Clarke in the second round.

Either Richard Gasquet or Lucas Pouille should hand the Swiss his first real test, before 14th seed Borna Coric – who took him out in the Halle final in 2018 – could await him in the last-16.



Federer potential route to Wimbledon glory

R1: Harris
R2: Clarke
R3: Gasquet
R4: Coric
QF: Isner
SF: Cilic
F: Djokovic

There are perhaps question marks over John Isner’s fitness but if healthy, he has a great chance of returning to the last-eight. Tomas Berdych, Matteo Berrettini and eighth seed Kei Nishikori are all capable of going that far.

I suspect Nadal will falter at some point, which could give Cilic – who may well be the man to beat him – the chance to return to the final four, while Djokovic is the favourite to reach the final.





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