Roger Federer reveals Novak Djokovic worry after nightmare US Open draw
ROGER FEDERER says he has “enough to worry about” after being drawn in the same quarter as Novak Djokovic at the US Open.
Federer is looking to put a difficult couple of months behind him when the US Open gets underway on Monday.
The Swiss star failed to defend his Wimbledon crown after suffering a shock quarter-final defeat against Kevin Anderson.
He then lost to Novak Djokovic in the final of the Cincinnati Masters, raising doubts over his US Open title credentials.
The No 2 seed opens his campaign against Yoshihito Nishioka but it starts to get difficult from the third round as a potential meeting with Nick Kyrgios awaits.
Get through that and he would be well on the way to setting up a rematch with Djokovic, who is the favourite to win the tournament with the bookmakers, in the quarter-finals.
“The draw is what it is and I have enough stuff to worry about in the first round,” Federer said.
“The US Open is even more important to me this year.”
Federer has previously explained how he thinks Rafael Nadal and Djokovic are the favourites to win the tournament.
“It's nice to see Novak has come back, and Milos (Raonic) has been playing great tennis again,” Federer added.
“Stan (Wawrinka) seems solid again. Same with (Kei) Nishikori. These are all guys that we were missing for the last nine months or so. So that's going to be fun.
“I'm not the favourite. They are. Rafa (Nadal) and Novak, in my opinion.”
Roger Federer US Open draw: What is his projected route to the final?
First round: Y Nishioka
Second round: B Paire or qualifier
Third round: N Kyrgios
Round of 16: F Fognini
Quarter-final: N Djokovic
Semi-final: M Cilic
Final: R Nadal