The quarterfinals are set at Wimbledon 2017. Of the Big Four, the only player that is missing is Rafael Nadal. Otherwise, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray will play on Wednesday, a day that features all four of the men's quarterfinals.
Murray and Federer on Centre Court
Centre Court at Wimbledon on Wednesday will start with Andy Murray and Sam Querrey, perhaps in a match that does not look all that intriguing at first. Querrey is a strong player on grass, but the Wimbledon quarterfinals might just be his ceiling without a lucky draw.
Last year he lost to Milos Raonic in the Wimbledon quarters and this year the American has drawn a more talented player in the same round of play. Querrey certainly has weapons that can punish an off-form Murray, however from the start the match it appears to be on the Scot's racket. Their quarterfinal match is scheduled to start at 1pm local time in London's greater area.
The more intriguing match for Centre Court is the second one up. That will feature Milos Raonic against Roger Federer in a blockbuster quarterfinal. Raonic has proven that he is capable of defeating the Swiss Maestro on grass as the Canadian did so last season at the All England Club, in the tournament's semifinals. A lot went wrong for Federer during that match as he suffered a fall that cost him a lot of late-season events in 2016.
There is loads on the line for each player, as Raonic has a genuine chance at winning the Wimbledon title for the first time. Meanwhile, Federer is short on years to add another title at the All England Club. This tantalizing match-up will follow the Murray/Querrey quarterfinal.
Cilic and Muller open Court No. 1
Court No. 1 at the All England Club will start with Marin Cilic at Gilles Muller.
Muller is the player that eliminated Rafael Nadal in the fourth round of play. The match went 15-13 in the 5th set, suggesting that Muller might not have a ton of energy left for the Wimbledon quarters. This is a career match for him, as he has only made the quarters of a Grand Slam one time. For Cilic, the match is a career match when looking at Wimbledon results.
Of course, Cilic, the 2014 US Open champion, has won bigger matches. However, the quarters of Wimbledon have been his unclearable hurdle in recent years. That he has drawn an inexperienced player in Muller, the worst player remaining in the draw, means that he has a huge opportunity for the Croat on Wednesday.
The second match on Court No. 1 will feature Tomas Berdych and Novak Djokovic. The two players have one of the more one-sided head-to-head series among active players in ATP tennis. Berdych, in 27 attempts, has only defeated Djokovic twice. Many might be quick to point out that the Czech did get one of those wins at Wimbledon specifically. However, Djokovic is the clear favorite in this contest.
The draw will see the winner of the Murray/Querrey match face the winner of the Cilic/Muller match. That's interesting, because there was some buzz about Murray being injured pre-tournament. If that buzz has substance then it's the quality players late in the draw that will best be able to expose or take advantage of the injury (he has had hip troubles). The bottom of the Wimbledon 2017 draw sees the survivor of Federer/Raonic taking on either Djokovic or Berdych. With all four of those players having made the Wimbledon final before, the bottom half has to be judged as the difficult section.