World number one Roger Federer will have to overcome a path filled with revenge-hungry foes from other Grand Slam events in his bid to win a 12th career Slam title and his fourth US Open in a row.
The draw for the year’s last Grand Slam tennis event was made here Wednesday and the Swiss superstar, who will play a qualifier in the first round and would face another in round two, has some notable obstacles later in his quest.
Federer, the US Open top seed for the fourth year in a row, can meet Spain’s Juan Carlos Ferrero or Frenchman Richard Gasquet in the fourth round and Czech Tomas Berdych or Andy Roddick, the 2006 US Open runner-up, in a quarterfinal.
In the third round, Federer could face either a qualifier, Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen or sizzling US wild-card newcomer John Isner.
The highest-ranked possible quarterfinal foes for Federer include US fifth seed Roddick, who has lost 13 of 14 career meetings with Federer and gone four years since his lone victory, and Berdych, who lost to Federer in last year’s French Open and Wimbledon fourth round but won their first meeting at the 2004 Athens Olympics.
Federer’s half of the draw brings in US sixth seed James Blake, Russian fourth seed Nikolay Davydenko, German 10th seed Tommy Haas and Argentina’s Guillermo Canas, who defeated Federer this year at Indian Wells and Miami, as potential semifinal foes. Spain’s Rafael Nadal, who beat Federer in the Roland Garros final and made an epic five-set fight before falling in the Wimbledon final, is the second seed and could await in a third consecutive Slam final.
Nadal, who owns an 8-5 career edge on Federer, opens against Australian wild card Alun Jones with Serbia’s Janko Tipsarevic or American Ryan Sweeting next in line.
Williams’ threat
World number one Justin Henin and defending champion Maria Sharapova were drawn onto opposite sides of the women’s draw but Henin’s half has fellow 2007 Grand Slam winners Venus and Serena Williams.
Henin will open against a qualifier, with Russia’s Olga Poutchkova or another qualifier awaiting in round two.
Japan’s Ai Sugiyama, Germany’s Julia Schruff or yet another qualifier will face the Belgian star should she advance to the third round. US eighth seed Serena Williams, who won the Australian Open but lost to Henin in the French Open and Wimbledon quarterfinals, could face Henin again in the US Open quarterfinals.
Wimbledon winner Venus Williams is a potential semifinal foe for her sister or Henin. Russian second seed Sharapova has sixth-seeded compatriot Anna Chakvetadze in her quarter of the draw as a potential quarterfinal foe.
The Russian beauty opens against Italy’s Roberta Vinci.