We may have reached the part of the tennis season where the casual fan has stopped paying attention, but there are plenty of interesting storylines to follow over the next couple of months. Below are some key questions we will get answers to before the end of the tennis season.
How will Rafael Nadal come back from injury?
Many people thought Rafael Nadal was going to shut it down for the year, but he has decided to play the post US Open season. Nadal is never at his best during this part of the year, as he is usually worn down physically and playing on courts which do not suit his game. He probably does not have high expectations for the rest of the season, but getting back to playing matches should help him for the 2015 season. A few good results won’t be surprising, but its hard to see Nadal winning one of the few biggest remaining tournaments.
Will Djokovic dominate once again at the end of the year?
This is the time of year where Novak Djokovic often separates himself from the rest of the tour. Last year Djokovic won everything, taking the titles at the Shanghai and Paris Masters tournaments along with the year-ending championship. While duplicating that feat will be extremely difficult, we should expect another strong end to the season from Djokovic. He should be hungry to prove his North American hardcourt slump was simply a temporary post-wedding lapse of focus. While he does not have the year-end number one ranking locked up, it is hard to see Federer or Nadal catching him. Both are over 1000 points behind in the race, and a solid end to the season should be all Djokovic needs to finish the year number one for the third time in his career.
Who will claim the last few spots for the year end World Tour Finals?
There are several players competing for the last few spots at the year-ending World Tour Finals. Djokovic, Federer, Nadal and Wawrinka are going to make it, and Marin Cilic and Kei Nishikori look well on their way. That leaves two spots for the likes of Andy Murray, David Ferrer, Tomas Berdych, Milos Raonic and Grigor Dimitrov. All would deserve a spot, but three of them are going to be left out. Ferrer and Berdych have been slumping as of late, so its easy to see them getting passed by. But a strong end to the season wouldn’t be surprising from Murray, Raonic or Dimitrov, and the latter two should be especially motivated to make their first World Tour Finals.
How will Cilic handle being a champion?
Cilic may not know how to handle his newfound fame, but his powerful game should benefit from the faster courts that are played on throughout the rest of the year. Cilic could lose every match and still be thrilled with his season, but he will be looking to prove his US Open title wasn’t a fluke. He may not repeat the level of success he had in New York, but he should have a couple of deep runs in him at the year’s remaining tournaments.
Can Switzerland get past France and win the Davis Cup title?
One of the only things Roger Federer is missing from his resume is a Davis Cup title (along with the gold medal in singles at the Olympics). This is the first time Federer has been in the finals of the event, but it won’t be an easy task. The finals is in France, and the French team is deep even with an injured Monfils. Stan Wawrinka has not been in good form recently, and the Swiss will need him to get it figured out by the time the finals rolls around. It will likely take a vintage Federer performance to get past the stronger French team, but Federer should be as motivated as he’s been for any tournament in quite some time.
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