Draw dismay for Federer and Nadal

LONDON. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have been drawn as potential opponents in the Wimbledon quarter-finals.

Saturday, June 22, 2013
Murray could face Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarter-finals, who he beat at Queen's last week. Net photo.

SELECTED FIRST ROUND MATCHESBenjamin Becker     vs     Andy Murray (2)Novak Djokovic (1)     vs     Florian MayerRafael Nadal (5)     vs     Steve DarcisVictor Hanescu     vs     Roger Federer (3)Lleyton Hewitt     vs     Stanislas Wawrinka (11)Marin Cilic (10)     vs     Marcos BaghdatisLONDON. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have been drawn as potential opponents in the Wimbledon quarter-finals. The pair, who have won nine titles between them and met three times in the final, will be dismayed by the draw, the possibility of an early clash having been raised by Nadal’s controversial No5 seeding for the tournament. Federer will play Romania’s Victor Hanescu in the opening match on Centre Court on Monday, while Nadal faces Steve Darcis in the first round.Andy Murray has been drawn in the same half as Federer and Nadal and, if results go to form, would play the winner of the match between the Swiss and Spaniard in the semi-finals. Before that, in the last eight Murray could face a repeat of this month’s Aegon Championships semi-final against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, a tie he won. Murray’s first opponent is Benjamin Becker, another he beat at Queen’s last week, and he could meet fellow Brit James Ward in the second round. His first potential seeded opponent is Tommy Robredo, with Janko Tipsarevic perhaps lying in wait in the fourth round.Murray beat Becker in straight sets last week when he played the German at Queen’s. That is the only time the two have met.Becker is ranked 95 in the world and hails from Merzig. The big-serving 32-year-old has won just one career title since turning professional in 2005. Nicknamed Benni, he is no relation to the former No1 and six-time Grand Slam title winner Boris Becker.Novak Djokovic, the top seed, was the beneficiary of the draw, avoiding his big three rivals until the final. His potential quarter-final opponent could be Tomas Berdych, with David Ferrer and Juan Martín del Potro seeded to meet in the other quarter-final. Djokovic will play Florian Meyer in round one.