A ton of injuries have affected the ATP of late. The old news is that Stan Wawrinka, Andy Murray, Marin Cilic, and Novak Djokovic are all sidelined with injuries. Looking at just those players in isolation, them missing tournaments really dilutes the talent active on tour right now. But in more-recent news, Roger Federer is out of Cincinnati with a back problem, Kei Nishikori also pulled out with an injured right wrist, and Gael Monfils pulled out due to illness. Those are major stars that are also now missing from the Cincinnati draw and there is now an opportunity for an underdog player to make the Cincinnati final.
That would especially be the case if another major star pulled out. On that note, Milos Raonic made some cryptic comments in a recent interview regarding his health status.
Raonic "testing" his wrist and hopeful
Raonic, who went out early in the 2017 Rogers Cup last week, recently interviewed with the ATP Tour in Cincinnati, an interview that has been published to the ATP's Youtube account. He has had a bad wrist of late and he recently called the injury a "day-by-day thing." For fans of the Canadian star, that's certainly not totally reassuring as to his playing status at the 2017 Western & Southern Open.
In elaborating on his health status, Raonic said that he was "testing (his wrist) out" in Cincinnati "before the tournament...starts." He also said that "hopefully" he is "in the shape necessary that (he) can compete on the first day." His remarks sound as though there is at least a possibility that he would pull out of the Cincinnati draw.
Certainly having a "day-by-day" injury doesn't sound serious, however the Cincinnati Masters have started already. It's not like there is a ton of time to be patient with an injury.
Raonic's name doesn't appear on the order of play for Tuesday. As the 6th seed in the tournament, he has a bye through the first round. In fact, he is one of the top players that has benefited from the rash of injuries to others at the 2017 Cincinnati Masters.
His ranking is not high enough at this point in his career to guarantee a high seed in such a prestigious event. However, all the players pulling out has given him that luxury.
Time is of the essence now
Raonic will have to open his tournament on Wednesday in the round of 32 against a yet-to-be determined opponent. One potential second-round match up would be Borna Coric, the 20-year-old Croat.
That Raonic is in Cincinnati is certainly suggestive that he plans to compete. But the Cincinnati Masters is a small-field event compared to Grand Slams. There are no easy matches and if Raonic's wrist is not up to par by Wednesday then he is is a risk to go out in the early rounds, if he plays.
With Federer already replaced in that half of the draw, perhaps John Isner will emerge as a major player in Cincinnati. The American is in excellent form this summer having won both Newport and Atlanta already. He is into the second round following a Sunday win. While Alexander Zverev is in Isner's section of the draw it's possible that the German might be tired following two title runs the last two weeks in Washington and Montreal.
