E-Paper
Federer due in town as Sousa lines up Djokovic at Paris Masters
The 37-year-old Swiss star won his 99th career title at the weekend in Basel but hasn’t played in Paris in three years due to injury and selective scheduling.
Roger Federer is poised to seek his 100th ATP title at the Paris Masters this week with organisers announcing the Swiss great “arrives” on Tuesday. If the holder of 20 Grand Slam titles lines up at Bercy it will be his first appearance at the last Masters event of the season since 2015.
The 37-year-old Swiss star won his 99th career title at the weekend in Basel but hasn’t played in Paris in three years due to injury and selective scheduling.
Federer “arrives tomorrow” organisers tweeted on Monday. He faces either Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or Milos Raonic on Wednesday. Portugal’s Joao Sousa will meet Novak Djokovic in the second round after defeating Marco Cecchinato 7-5, 6-3 in his opening match.
Cecchinato stunned Djokovic in the quarter-finals of the French Open in June, but the Italian missed out on a rematch with Djokovic as he fell apart after losing his serve at 5-5 in the opening set. Second seed Djokovic is a four-time champion in Paris and is bidding to reclaim the world number one ranking from Rafael Nadal this week.
The Spaniard, who has never won the indoor tournament, is making his return from the knee injury that scuppered his US Open chances. Filip Krajinovic, last year’s runner-up in Paris, slid to a first-round defeat by Karen Khachanov that will send the Serb spiralling down the rankings.
The 34th-ranked Krajinovic served for the first set but rapidly came unstuck and suffered a 7-5, 6-2 loss that will see him tumble outside the top 90. Richard Gasquet beat Denis Shapovalov but Gasquet’s fellow Frenchman Nicoals Mahut went out 7-6 (7/1), 6-2 to American Frances Taifoe.
