Saturday, June 19, 2010
Associated Press
WIMBLEDON, England
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal face challenging paths to set up another Wimbledon final. Serena and Venus Williams also face potential pitfalls before another all-sister title match.
Six-time champion Federer and Nadal — the only man to beat him at Wimbledon in the last seven finals — were both handed tricky draws Friday for the grass-court Grand Slam tournament.
Federer, seeded No. 1 although he has dropped to No. 2 in the rankings behind Nadal, is in the same top half of the draw with Andy Roddick, Novak Djokovic and former champion Lleyton Hewitt.
Second-seeded Nadal, who beat Federer in an epic five-set final in 2008 but missed last year’s tournament with knee troubles, has Andy Murray and Robin Soderling in the bottom half of the draw.
Federer, winner of a record 16 Grand Slam championships, is trying to match Pete Sampras’ modern era record of seven singles titles at the All England Club.
Federer will open play Monday on Centre Court against Colombia’s 65th-ranked Alejandro Falla — the third matchup between the two players in the last three tournaments.
Nadal plays Japan’s Kei Nishikori in the first round.
In the women’s draw, the Williams sisters are seeded to meet again in the final for the fifth time. At least one Williams has played in nine of the last 10 finals, with the sisters sharing eight of the last 10 titles.
Top-seeded and three-time champion Serena has former winner Maria Sharapova and French Open runner-up Samantha Stosur in her half. Five-time champion Venus has Belgians Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin, both returning to Wimbledon after coming out of retirement, in her half.