The last Masters 1000 Tennis event of the season is on this week's radar. The 2018 Rolex Paris Masters is the last stop of the regular season. After that, when all it'll be done and dusted the best eight players of the year will head to London for the Nitto ATP Finals while the young pack will travel to Milan for that brand new refreshing contest NextGen Finals aims to be.
For Roger Federer, things played out quite well recently. Last week, in Basel, he overcame a slow start of the week to finish up strong by clinching a ninth title at his hometown tournament while the overall counter reached the 99th value, one step away from the dazzling 100th milestone.
Seeded third in Paris, Roger Federer made it into the third round without playing a single minute. After a grueling three-set battle against the home favorite Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Milos Raonic paid the price. According to ESPN, a bad elbow forced him to call it a week.
Roger Federer will face Fabio Fognini next
Things are settling well for the 37-year-old Swiss tennis legend. He could use that unexpected break to recharge his batteries and prepare for some fierce resistance next.
He is set to play against Fabio Fognini of Italy as the Italian also received a helping hand from Marton Fucsovic who also withdrew due to an injury.
While Fognini always tends to be a tricky opponent to play against, Roger Federer still has the upper hand.
According to their official head to head stats on the ATP website, Federer leads by 3-0. But they haven't competed against one another since 2014 so things might get interesting on the court.
Federer's nightmares Anderson and Djokovic loom ahead
Should he gets past Fognini, some stormy clouds might emerge as either Kevin Anderson or Kei Nishikori will be at the other end.
While Nishikori tends to be an easy rock to crack open, Anderson remains one of Federer's recent nightmares after that stunning defeat at the 2018 Wimbledon Championships.
A possible blockbuster looms ahead as Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic are on a collision course for the semis.
Once Rafael Nadal decided to withdraw from Paris, Novak Djokovic is certain of reclaiming the world No.
1 seat on Monday when rankings get a new update. This fact alone makes the possibility of a Federer vs Djokovic clash even more interesting.
With Nadal's withdrawal, the upper half o the draw gets quite an opening which may bring some unexpected opportunities for others. Alexander Zverev remains the highest seed in that section with the likes of Dominic Thiem, John Isner or Borna Coric expected to amplify their efforts throughout the week.
The defending champion Jack Sock is also alive and kicking possibly trying to finish up the season on a positive trend. It's been a rough year for the American who failed to rise to the level of expectations revolving around him.
Roger Federer surprised everyone with his decision to play at Paris-Bercy. Let's see if that last-minute call will earn him that long-debated 100th ATP title.
