The upcoming week will translate into an increased level of heat across Europe's indoors venues as two ATP 500 are scheduled in Basel and Vienna. Roger Federer, the world No. 2 in the ATP rankings will try to clinch another title in what seems to be a sweet home-comeback. He will feature the ATP 500 event in Basel, his hometown from Switzerland. His rival and world No. 1 contender Rafael Nadal withdrew from the event due to an ongoing knee injury. To put it simply, that means an unexpected chance for Federer to close the gap even though his chances remains thin.
Still, Federer may not be seeking to clinch the summit as his strategy offer a hin in that direction. Choosing to compete in Basel may hamper his chances for a success in what is likely to be a better place to gather points, namely the last Masters 1000 of the season at the Paris-Bercy indoor venue.
Federer has a special bond with Basel
According to the ATP official page, the event in Basel brings some big names to the table too. Federer is not the only one seeking glory as Marin Cilic, 2016 champion, David Goffin, Nick Kyrgios, Jack Sock or Juan Martin del Potro (2012 and 2013 titlist) are all expected to make an appearance there.
For the 36-year-old Swiss, this event is a special one indeed.
Back in 2015, he won his seventh title by defeating Rafael Nadal in three sets final showdown. At that time there was no clue about their future rivalry. That was the beginning of five-consecutive wins for Federer against Nadal, a winning streak with four episodes in 2017.
Federer will enter the event as the highest seed with Marin Cilic on the second position.
Thus, the 2017 Wimbledon men's final can deliver a reply by the end of next week if both Federer and Cilic are going to respect their statuses.
Federer has the momentum on his side
Unlike Nadal who went earlier in Asia, Federer put his money on Shanghai Rolex Masters only. As it turned out, it paid off eventually as he clinched his third Masters 1000 of the season ad the 27th overall.
On the other side, an extended schedule on hard hampered Nadal's knee. It'll be interesting how the Spaniard will manage the upcoming events knowing that his goal for this part of the year is winning the ATP Finals, an event where he is yet to prevail.
If Nadal decides to skip Paris-Bercy too and Federer will travel for the indoor event n France, the O2 Arena in London will be a battle where the winner takes all, just like in 2016 when Andy Murray edged Djokovic in the ranking by defeating the Serb in the final.
