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Montreal Masters: Men’s Draw Analysis and Predictions

By Geoff Nichols

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Montreal Masters: Men’s Draw Analysis and Predictions

The Montreal Masters gets underway this week and we are here to comb through the draw and make our predictions for the tennis ahead. It is a strong field at the ATP 1000 event even after the withdrawals of Top 10 players Roger Federer and David Ferrer. First seed Novak Djokovic comes in as the favourite, whilst unseeded Frenchman Jo Wilfried Tsonga was the winner in 2014.

Many players in the draw will hope to take inspiration from Tsonga, replicating his stunning run to the title last year where he beat Djokovic, Murray, Dimitrov and Federer in consecutive matches. It was a result that perhaps shows that aggression and big serving can bring success on the courts of Montreal. Also, with some top players only just returning to action after the summer.

– Latest ATP Race Standings – 

The event have afforded byes to the eight seeds, with a 56 man draw in total. It is a pivotal time for players in the context of the season as a whole, as the US hard court swing has a lot of points up for grabs. This is especially the case in terms of the ATP Race standings, where players will be looking to solidify their positions inside the Top 8 top ensure qualification for the World Tour Finals.

First Quarter – Novak Djokovic’s Section 

Novak Djokovic SRB [1] v Bye

Thomaz Bellucci BRA v Pablo Cuevas URU

Jack Sock USA v Adrian Mannarino FRA

Alexandr Dolgopolov UKR  v Grigor Dimitrov BUL

Kevin Anderson RSA v Lukas Rosol CZE

Ernests Gulbis LAT v Dominic Thiem AUT

Denis Kudla USA v Donald Young USA

Tomas Berdych CZE [5] v Bye

Novak Djokovic makes his return to the tour and he won’t be overly concerned by his potential opening few rounds. A match against either Grigor Dimitrov or Jack Sock could be one to watch if the Serbian is not at his best, but he has shown once again in 2015 that he rarely throws in an off key performance at these events.

– Can Novak Djokovic be the Greatest of All Time? – 

The next highest seed is Thomas Berdych, whose season has somewhat tailed off after a powerful opening to the year. I can see him recapturing that form in the second half of the season as he should continue his impressive record of beating lower ranked opponents.

Rising star Dominic Thiem is one of the names to watch in this quarter, but it is going to be difficult for any surprise candidate to emerge with Berdych and Djokovic around. Kevin Anderson was in fine form in the grass court season and we will have to see whether he can translate that to hard court success.

Second Quarter – Stan Wawrinka’s Section 

Stan Wawrinka SUI [3] v Bye

Fernando Verdasco ESP v Nick Kyrgios AUS

Vasek Pospisil CAN v Yen-Hsun Lu TPE

Benjamin Becker GER v John Isner USA

Richard Gasquet FRA v Jeremy Chardy FRA

Hyeon Chung KOR v Leonardo Mayer ARG

Jerzy Janowicz POL v Ivo Karlovic CRO

Milos Raonic CAN [8] v Bye

The form of Stan Wawrinka at Masters events in quite difficult to predict. He can go out in the early rounds or he can string together some solid wins, but he has never really made an impact at the North American Masters. The draw has been kind, although a mouth watering clash with Nick Kyrgios looms first up in round two.

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Milos Raonic, who is looking for wins heading into the US hard court series, is set to face a big serves in his opening match, which can always be difficult when you are looking to gain a foothold in the event. Playing at his home event at the Montreal Masters should motivate him to play even better.

Washington runner up John Isner also finds himself in this quarter full of big servers. Two questions are relevant to the American. Whether he can maintain this amazing form and whether all his time on court over the last two weeks might begin to catch up with him.

Third Quarter – Kei Nishikori’s Section

Rafael Nadal ESP [7] v Bye

Sergiy Stakhovsky UKR v  Filip Peliwo CAN

Viktor Troicki SRB v Mikhail Youzhny RUS

Andreas Seppi ITA v Gilles Simon FRA

David Goffin BEL v Steve Johnson USA

Sam Querrey USA v Martin Klizan SVK

Frank Dancevic CAN v Pablo Andujar ESP

Kei Nishikori JPN [4] v Bye

Washington champion Kei Nishikori doesn’t have long to dwell on his success last week, although he possibly has the kindest draw of the Top 4 seeds. Clearly the North American hard courts suit his game and this is a crucial period for him, as he is defending 1,200 points at the US Open alone.

– What is wrong with Rafael Nadal? – 

I would love to see a match up between Nishikori and Rafael Nadal in the quarter finals. It would be a real measure of where the Spaniard is at on hard courts, because an aggressive Nishikori could well blow him away. On the flip side it could be a turning point for Nadal in his quest to return to top form.

Fourth Quarter – Andy Murray’s Section

Marin Cilic CRO [6] v Bye

Joao Sousa POR v Bernard Tomic AUS

Roberto Bautista Agut ESP v Janko Tipsarevic SRB

Borna Coric CRO v Jo-Wilfried Tsonga FRA

Gael Monfils FRA v Fabio Fognini ITA

Philip Bester CAN v Gilles Muller LUX

Feliciano Lopez ESP v Tommy Robredo ESP

Andy Murray GBR [2] v Bye

Andy Murray attempts to well and truly kick off his US hard court swing, having suffered somewhat of a false start in Washington last week. The announcement that he and his wife are expecting their first child must have been an albeit welcome distraction last week, but now it is back to business.

– Andy Murray having career year in 2015 – 

He finds himself in the same quarter as Marin Cilic, which seems like a good draw on paper. The Croatian, however, has his fondest tennis memory in North America and has troubled Murray on the hard courts before. If both make the quarter finals it would be a tough match to call.

Please do share your thoughts in the comments below and on Twitter.

Next: Wimbledon 2015: Top 5 Upsets in Men's Draw

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