Some journalists lamented, understandably, the fact that the draw was not done live in public, but behind closed doors; the public witnessed a revelation of the behind-closed-doors draw. The suspicion goes on.
Here we are at the outset.
The quarters look generally like this:
Nadal v Anderson
Del Potro v Wawrinka (who’s a WC, facing Dimitrov in R1)
Cilic v Zverev
Federer v Djokovic
The biggest news here, obviously, is Djokovic, probably the true #1 in the world, into Federer’s quarter, who is ranked #2 in the world. Just an odd “draw” to say the least.
Moreover, Federer gets Kyrgios in the 3R. Ha ha ha.
Sorry, old Maestro. Not the best look, especially when you’re looking for that “energy,” something Federer mentioned in an interview recently, which actually seems to make sense.
Oh well.
We’ll take a closer look later, but this is about all you need to know.
Mcshow Blog 
Kyrgios is good to get “that energy” and rise the game before Djoker. Not sure if Djoker has reserves to rise his game over the level from Cincy. Cincy was for me not the ultimate measure of where Djokovic is. Given the current form of everyone, Nadal would be a bigger challenge. Lendl arranged a decent draw for Sascha, but still he would need to overcome Cilic or Goffin to meet Fed in semifinal. QF would be good enough for Zverev at this time.
For what’s most interesting for me, Thiem has a decent draw.until Anderson in round 4. But round 4. after illness and long break should be seen as more than minimum this year. Or Thiem is maybe after some days with Big Mac in extremely good form – then he should think about how to beat Rafa (not on clay).
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Well, the irony here is that Djokovic, having said he prefers Bo3, is very well-suited for this format and given the stakes, he’s going to be massively motivated. I guess the one issue with him right now is he can be vulnerable early in the draw, kinda like Nadal. But if these boys get through into the second week, unless they simply play a monster of some sort, they will be very difficult.
Djoker doesn’t need a massive level. His style allows others to kill themselves. His confidence and the format, again, play into his favor.
You may have a point with the Kyrgios draw. If Federer needs great form to get by that lunatic, maybe Fed is primed. But Djoker in the QF is really tough.
We have to wait to see Thiem toss a ball before any word on his form.
I haven’t said really anything about the Lendl hire, but it fits with your diagnosis of Sascha. He wants to win NOW, feels he’s almost deserving of more opportunity. He’s got a lot to learn, I’m afraid.
But since I’m a big Lendl guy (old school guy), the hire can’t really hurt.
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I totally agree with you about Djoker. Yes, if he is confident and not physical ruin, he leads anyone into self-destruction. Including Federer. Maybe not Rafa, because Rafa is younger and his confidence has very solid foundations. And nobody can break his mental strengt and fighting spirit. But we are speaking about Fed. I don’t really believe, Fed can find “that energy”. If Kyrgios in fit and in a mood to fight, he defeats Fed, so his search for “that energy”, will no more be valid in NYC 😉
Yeah – Thiem is a wild guess now. Bresnik is telling superlatives after hitting at BigMac Academy, but I think, Thiem needs an atomic win in first round te build-up confidence in competition quickly (not the same as perfect hitting in practice) before bigger opposition comes.
You say, you are the old school guy. @Metoo 😉 But Lendl is not just the only one oldschool player. And if it was Becker, Sampras or anybody else, this would have the same meaning, only telling a lot about Sascha. But so far I know about Lendle, Lendl with tell him, not to expect slam titles in next few years. And I think, Lendl is not ready to be hired for long-term relation with anyone. What can he really do in a week before and during USO?
My imagination. Sascha hits something, he believes to be stellar, looks happily direction box and sees Lendl sitting like in classic theater with stony face. Sascha is a bit disoriented and stops to pump. Next “big shot” and the same routine. After some time Sascha stops to look to the box and focuses on his play, understanding, he should play better, because he can. This can help Sascha a bit. But no guarantee to reach SF or even QF. Rather to shift his focus from gold to performance, ha, ha …
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