ALL THINGS ATP

Rafael Nadal announced his withdrawal from the BNP Paribas Masters in Paris as well as the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London on Thursday due to a left knee injury.

Nadal said, “It’s disappointing for me to miss the last two tournaments of the season in Paris and London, but it doesn’t come as a surprise. I will hopefully resume my tennis practice soon since I am making good progress with my recovery from injury. I am not ready to compete in time for these events so I will continue my recovery in Mallorca and work hard to be back as soon as possible.”

Brad Drewett, ATP Executive Chairman & President, said: “We wish Rafa all the best as he continues his rehabilitation from injury. Rafa is an incredible champion and it goes without saying that he has been missed on the ATP World Tour over the past few months. We look forward to welcoming him back on the tour very soon.”

Nadal has not played since 28 June, when he lost to Czech Lukas Rosol6-7(9), 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 in the Wimbledon second round.

The German city of Düsseldorf will host an ATP World Tour 250 tennis tournament in the week before Roland Garros after leading promoter Ion Tiriac and the recently retired player Rainer Schuettler joined forces to acquire the tournament membership. The Power Horse Cup, to be staged at the Rochusclub, will be held Sunday May 19 to Saturday May 25.

Pan-European broadcaster Eurosport will be the official domestic and international media partner for a minimum of three years and will televise matches daily during the clay-court event. It is the first time that Eurosport will be the host broadcaster of an ATP World Tour tournament. Live HD coverage will be available on Eurosport and Eurosport2 in 59 countries and the partnership also gives Eurosport digital rights to all matches.

Power Horse Cup Tournament Director Dietloff von Arnim said: “We’re glad the great tradition of ATP tournaments in Düsseldorf can be continued with the staging of the 2013 Power Horse Cup… We’re also proud that we’ve gained Eurosport as the host broadcaster. It guarantees excellent coverage for fans and sponsors alike – not only in Germany but in the whole of Europe.”

Former World No. 5 and Australian Open finalist Schuettler said: “For me, it is great to come from the tennis playing side to now getting involved in tournament organisation. Dietloff von Arnim will organise the event, so we have great experience in this partnership. I am looking forward in the years to come to build a great event there.”

Novak Djokovic will challenge Roger Federer for the No. 1 South African Airways ATP Ranking this week at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati. If Federer reaches the final, he will retain the No. 1 spot regardless, but anything less, and he will find himself under pressure from the No. 2-ranked Djokovic.

Federer retook No. 1 from Djokovic after winning his 17th major title at The Championships, Wimbledon. A week later, he broke Pete Sampras’ record for most weeks at No. 1 with 287 weeks. However, the Swiss was forced to withdraw from theRogers Cup last week and, following Djokovic’s success over Richard Gasquet in the Toronto final, Federer now finds himself just 75 points ahead of the Serb.

Nevertheless, with Djokovic dropping 600 points this week, having reached the Cincinnati final last year (l. to Murray), Federer does still hold the advantage. After bowing out in the quarter-finals last year (l. to Berdych), the Basel native is only dropping 180 points from his total.

If Djokovic is to re-ascend to No. 1, he must reach the final and hope four-time former champion Federer loses before the quarter-finals. If Federer were to reach the quarter or semi-finals, Djokovic could overtake the Swiss by winning the title.

Federer and Djokovic are the Top 2 seeds at this ATP World Tour Masters 1000 hard-court tournament in Cincinnati. Djokovic finds himself in the same half of the draw as defending champion Andy Murray, Juan Martin del Potro and Janko Tipsarevic, while Federer could come up againstDavid Ferrer, Tomas Berdych or Mardy Fish on his route to the final. Both players have first-round byes.

HAMBURG TUESDAY PREVIEW – TOP THREE GERMANS HIGHLIGHT CENTRE COURT SCHEDULE

• The remaining 11 first round matches at the bet-at-home Open German Tennis Championships 2012 will be played on Tuesday with the No. 1 seed and top three Germans leading the way on Centre Court.

• In the first match on, No. 7 seed Florian Mayer and Argentine qualifier Horacio Zeballos meet for the first time. Mayer, who is one spot behind No. 22 Kohlschreiber, reached the semi-finals in Hamburg two years ago. His best result of the season came at Wimbledon where he reached the quarter-finals (l. to Djokovic) for the second time (2004 debut). Zeballos comes in with a 3-5 match record (all on clay) and his best non-ATP World Tour result is a title effort at the Prague Challenger in May.

• In the second match, No. 3 seed Juan Monaco takes on young GermanCedrik-Marcel Stebe for the first time. Monaco comes in after a runner-up showing in Stuttgart on Sunday (l. to Tipsarevic). The 28-year-old Argentine is playing in Hamburg for the seventh time and he’s never advanced past the third round (2008, ’09, ’11). The No. 2 Argentine is compiling the best season of his career with a pair of ATP World Tour clay titles and 19-6 match record on clay. Stebe was a quarter-finalist in Stuttgart last week and a year ago he came into Hamburg ranked No. 168, posting wins over former No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero and former No. 3Nikolay Davydenko before losing to Fernando Verdasco in the third round. Stebe is ranked No. 83 after reaching a career-high No. 71 on Feb. 13.

• In the third match on, wild card Tommy Haas and the No. 2 player from Slovakia, Martin Klizan, square off for the first time. Haas has played well on German soil this season, winning the title last month in Halle (d. Federer) and reaching the semi-finals in Munich in May (l. to Cilic). Haas, who is playing in Hamburg for the first time in six years, has a 12-9 career mark here. He made his debut in 1997, reaching the semi-finals, and two years later he advanced to the quarter-finals, his best results. The 23-year-old Klizan has worked his way up to a career-high No. 59 this week in the South African Airways ATP Rankings. He’s compiled a 23-5 match record on the Challenger circuit with three titles.

• In the fourth match, No. 6 seed and top German Philipp Kohlschreiberbrings a 3-0 career mark against countryman Bjorn Phau. Two of their previous three meetings came on German soil three years ago in Munich and Halle with Kohlschreiber winning both in straight sets. Phau is coming off a season-best quarter-final showing last week in Stuttgart where he held four match points against eventual champion Janko Tipsarevic. Phau is 2-4 lifetime in Hamburg, reaching the second round in his debut 10 years ago and in ’06. Kohlschreiber, who captured his fourth career ATP World Tour title in Munich in May (d. Cilic), enters with a 31-15 match record (8-5 on clay) and No. 22 ranking. This is his first tournament since reaching his first Grand Slam quarter-final at Wimbledon (l. to Tsonga).

• In the final match on, top seed and last year’s runner-up Nicolas Almagro meets Tobias Kamke for the first time. The No. 10th-ranked Almagro is a two-time winner on the ATP World Tour this season and he was runner-up on Sunday in Bastad (l. to. Ferrer). Almagro has the most clay court match wins (31) on the ATP World Tour this season. The 26-year-old Kamke has struggled with a 3-12 match record this year (1-4 on clay). Kamke is 1-5 lifetime against Top 10 opponents with his lone win coming over No. 6 Tomas Berdych in the first round of Basel in November 2010.

TOP GERMANS ON ATP WORLD TOUR – Six of the seven Germans in the Top 100 South African Airways ATP Rankings are in action Tuesday (except No. 93 Philipp Petzschner):
22) Philipp Kohlschreiber
23) Florian Mayer
49) Tommy Haas
76) Bjorn Phau
83) Cedrik-Marcel Stebe
97) Tobias Kamke

TUESDAY FIRST ROUND  FEDEX ATP HEAD 2 HEADS – In Order of Play by Court

Centre Court 

(7) Florian Mayer (GER) vs Horacio Zeballos (ARG)    First Meeting

Mayer FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
QF: Wimbledon (l Djokovic)
YTD W-L: 13-16 (5-10 on clay)
YTD Titles: 0/Career Titles: 1
Date of Birth: October 5, 1983
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 23

Zeballos FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 3-5 (3-5 on clay)
YTD Titles: 0/Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: April 27, 1985
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 108

(3) Juan Monaco (ARG) vs Cedrik-Marcel Stebe (GER)   First Meeting

Monaco FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
W(2): Vina del Mar (d Berlocq); Houston (d Isner); F: Stuttgart (l Tipsarevic); SF: ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami (l Djokovic)
YTD W-L: 26-10 (19-6 on clay)
YTD Titles: 2/Career Titles: 5
Date of Birth: March 29, 1984
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 14

Stebe FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
QF: Stuttgart (l Bellucci)
YTD W-L: 7-12 (5-4 on clay)
YTD Titles: 0/Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: October 9, 1990
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 83

(WC) Tommy Haas (GER) vs Martin Klizan (SVK)   First Meeting

Haas FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
W: Halle (d Federer); SF: Munich (l Cilic)
YTD W-L: 15-8 (6-3 on clay)
YTD Titles: 1
Career Titles: 13
Date of Birth: April 3, 1978
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 49

Klizan FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 4-6 (2-3 on clay)
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: July 11, 1989
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 59 (Career-high)

Bjorn Phau (GER) vs (6) Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER)             Kohlschreiber Leads 3-0
09 Munich (Germany) Clay R32 Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-2 2-1 ret
09 Halle (Germany) Grass R32 Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-4 6-2
09 Metz (France) Hard R16 Philipp Kohlschreiber 4-6 6-3 6-2

Phau FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
QF: Stuttgart (l Tipsarevic)
YTD W-L: 6-9 (4-4 on clay)
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: October 4, 1979
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 76

Kohlschreiber FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
W: Munich (d Cilic); SF(3): Auckland (l Rochus); Montpellier (l Berdych); Halle (l Haas); QF(3): Delray Beach (l Sela); Eastbourne (l Seppi);Wimbledon (l Tsonga)
YTD W-L: 31-15 (8-5 on clay)
YTD Titles: 1
Career Titles: 4
Date of Birth: October 16, 1983
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 22

(1) Nicolas Almagro (ESP) vs Tobias Kamke (GER)  First Meeting

Almagro FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
W(2): Sao Paulo (d Volandri); Nice (d Baker); F(2): Buenos Aires (l Ferrer); Bastad (l Ferrer); SF: Chennai (l Raonic); QF(4): Auckland (l Kohlschreiber); Acapulco (l Verdasco); ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells (l Djokovic); Roland Garros (l Nadal)
YTD W-L: 43-14 (31-8 on clay)
YTD Titles: 2
Career Titles: 12
Date of Birth: August 21, 1985
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 10

Kamke FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 3-12 (1-4 on clay)
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: May 21, 1986
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 97

M 1 Court

Jeremy Chardy (FRA) vs Albert Montanes (ESP)  Tied 1-1
10 Barcelona (Spain) Clay R64 Jeremy Chardy 6-3 7-6(1)
10 Bucharest (Romania) Clay QF Albert Montanes 6-3 1-6 6-3

(8) Viktor Troicki (SRB) vs Lukas Rosol (CZE)   Tied 1-1
12 Doha (Qatar) Hard R32 Viktor Troicki 6-4 7-6(4)
12 CZE vs. SRB WG QF (Czech Rep) Clay RR Lukas Rosol 7-6(5) 7-5

(WC) Julian Reister (GER) vs (5) Fernando Verdasco (ESP)  First Meeting

M 3 Court

Pablo Andujar (ESP) vs Albert Ramos (ESP)   Andujar Leads 3-0
11 Kitzbuehel (Austria) Clay R16 Pablo Andujar 6-2 6-1
12 ATP Masters 1000 Indian Wells Hard R32 Pablo Andujar 7-6(5) 6-4
12 Casablanca (Morocco) Clay F Pablo Andujar 6-1 7-6(5)
Other meetings:
05 Spain F31 (Vilafranca) Clay R16 Pablo Andujar 6-2 3-6 6-0
06 Spain F14 (Lleida) Clay R16 Pablo Andujar 6-4 6-4
08 Valencia Q (Spain) Clay — Pablo Andujar 6-0 6-2
09 Seville CH (Spain) Clay R32 Albert Ramos 6-4 7-6(3)
10 Geneva CH (Switzerland) Clay QF Pablo Andujar 6-2 3-6 7-6(8)

Flavio Cipolla (ITA) vs (4) Marin Cilic (CRO)   Cilic Leads 2-0
09 ATP Masters 1000 Monte Carlo Clay R64 Marin Cilic 6-3 6-2
09 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Rome Clay R64 Marin Cilic 6-2 6-2
Other meeting:
08 Prostejov CH (Czech Republic) Clay R16 Flavio Cipolla 6-4 7-6(6)

(Q) Marsel Ilhan (TUR) vs Fabio Fognini (ITA)       First Meeting

GSTAAD TUESDAY PREVIEW – NO. 5 LOPEZ, NO. 6 BENNETEAU, FORMER CHAMP BELLUCCI IN ACTION 

• There are seven first round matches on Tuesday’s schedule at theCredit Agricole Suisse Open Gstaad, with the No. 5 and 6 seeds, and 2009 champion on Centre Court.
 
• In the opening match, Jan Hajek of the Czech Republic meets Frenchman Edouard Roger-Vasselin for the first time. Hajek is coming off a career-best ATP World Tour semi-final result in Bastad where he lost to No. 10-ranked Nicolas Almagro. Roger-Vasselin has advanced to a pair of ATP World Tour quarter-finals this year and climbed to a career-high ranking of No. 67 on June 11. He is No. 92 this week and he looks to even his match record (12-13) on the season.

• In the second match, No. 5 seed and 2006 runner-up Feliciano Lopez of Spain squares off with Romanian  Adrian Ungur for the first time. Lopez has compiled his best results on clay (6-7 mark) with a pair of semi-finals in Houston and  Munich along with a quarter-final in Barcelona. He reached a career-high No. 15 earlier this year but has slipped to No. 30 with a 12-16 match record. The 27-year-old Ungur is looking for his second ATP World Tour match win of the season (1-9).

• In the next match, 2009 champion Thomaz Bellucci of Brazil takes on top Slovenian Blaz Kavcic for the first time. Bellucci was a qualifier when he captured his first ATP World Tour title three years ago. Last week he reached his second semi-final of the season in Stuttgart (l. to eventual champ Tipsarevic). Bellucci is 15-14 on the year (11-9 on clay). Kavic has struggled on the ATP World Tour with a 5-11 mark but he’s worked his way up to a career-high No .71 in the South African Airways ATP Rankings last month (No. 77 this week) with success on Challenger circuit (21-5 record with two titles).

• In the final match, No. 6 seed Julien Benneteau of France and  on-the-rise Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria meet for the first time. Benneteau , who reached the quarter-finals here last year, is playing in his first tournament since reaching the third round at Wimbledon. He led Roger Federer 2-0 sets and was two points away from winning before the Swiss maestro rallied to win 6-1 in the fifth set. Benneteau is ranked No. 32 this week with a 17-13 match record. Last month Dimitrov advanced to his first career ATP World Tour semi-final at the Queens’ Club in London and last week he reached the semis in Bastad where he lost to eventual champion David Ferrer. He comes in with a 15-11 match record (5-4 on clay) and ranked No. 61. He went 7-8 through May but is 8-3 since June.

TUESDAY FIRST ROUND FEDEX ATP HEAD 2 HEADS – In Order of Play 

Centre Court

Jan Hajek (CZE) vs Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA)   First Meeting

Hajek FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
SF: Bastad (l Almagro)
YTD W-L: 3-1 (3-1 on clay)
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: August 7, 1983
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 90

Roger-Vasselin FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
QF(2): Marseille (l Tsonga); s-Hertogenbosch (l Petzschner)
YTD W-L: 12-13 (3-5 on clay)
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: November 28, 1983
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 92

(5) Feliciano Lopez (ESP) vs Adrian Ungur (ROU)    First Meeting

Lopez FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
SF(2): Houston (l Isner); Munich (l Kohlschreiber); QF: Barcelona (l Ferrer)
YTD W-L: 12-16 (6-7 on clay)
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 2
Date of Birth: September 20, 1981
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 30

Ungur FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 1-9 (1-7 on clay)
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: January 25, 1985
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 102

Thomaz Bellucci (BRA) vs Blaz Kavcic (SLO)    First Meeting

Bellucci FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
SF(2): Sao Paulo (l Volandri); Stuttgart (l Tipsarevic); QF: Nice (l Simon)
YTD W-L: 15-14 (11-9 on clay)
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 2
Date of Birth: December 30, 1987
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 60

Kavcic FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 5-11 (2-6 on clay)
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: March 5, 1987
South African Airways  ATP Ranking: 77

(6) Julien Benneteau (FRA) vs Grigor Dimitrov (BUL)   First Meeting

Benneteau FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
F: Sydney (l Nieminen); SF: San Jose (l Istomin)
YTD W-L: 17-13 (4-2 on clay)
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: December 20, 1981
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 32

Dimitrov FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
SF(2): London / Queen’s Club (l Nalbandian); Bastad (l Ferrer)
YTD W-L: 15-11 (5-4 on clay)
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: May 16, 1991
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 61

Court 1

Lukasz Kubot (POL) vs Ivan Dodig (CRO)   Kubot Leads 1-0
12 Sydney (Australia) Hard R32 Lukasz Kubot 7-6(4)  7-5
Other meetings:
07 Sarajevo CH (Bosnia & Herzegovina) Hard R32 Lukasz Kubot 7-6(8)  4-6 7-6(5)

(Q) Dustin Brown (GER) vs Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR)   First Meeting

Filippo Volandri (ITA) vs Ernests Gulbis (LAT)   Gulbis Leads 2-0
08 Vienna (Austria) Hard R32 Ernests Gulbis 6-2 6-3
10 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Rome Clay R16 Ernests Gulbis 6-2 3-6 7-6(4)

Top seed John Isner is one match away from successfully defending a title for the first time in his career after easing past sixth seed Ryan Harrison 7-6(4), 6-3 in the semi-finals of the Campbell’s Hall Of Fame Tennis Championships in Newport Saturday.

“It’s feeling very similar to last year,” reflected Isner. “I wasn’t playing well and I was ranked in the 40s when I came here last year. I desperately needed some wins and confidence, and that’s exactly what I got.

“This year, it’s pretty much the same, although I’m ranked a lot higher than 46th. I didn’t play well in Europe. It’s as simple as that. I’m always most comfortable in the U.S., which is something I need to work on. This is where I play well the most.”

Isner hit 11 aces, won 92 per cent of his first serve points and did not face a break point in the 86-minute victory. He has defeated his American compatriot in both of their meetings, with their other encounter coming in Memphis two years ago. The 27 year old is aiming to win his first title in 2012, following runner-up efforts at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells (l. to Federer) and the ATP World Tour 250 event in Houston (l. to Monaco). He is 27-13 on the season.

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In Sunday’s final, Isner will look to notch his first win in three clashes with Lleyton Hewitt.

“I haven’t had much success at all against him. He’s definitely had my number you could say,” Isner said. “He doesn’t mind playing against really big servers because his return is one of the best in the game. With the way he returns, that puts pressure on his opponents, similar with the way I can serve. It’s going to be different styles out there but it should be a good match.” 

Hewitt reached his first final in more than two years, overcoming 2009 champion Rajeev Ram 6-4, 5-7, 6-2. He won 74 per cent of his first serve points and broke serve five times to seal the victory in two hours and 21 minutes. He evened his FedEx ATP Head 2 Head record against Ram to 1-1, avenging last year’s defeat to the American in Atlanta.

“I had to take my chances. I felt like I was in every one of his service games. It was a matter of those half chances,” said Hewitt. “Early on in the match, I had a lot of break points, but he came up with big first serves. I didn’t get a look at a second serve on a break point. It was a matter of if I got that small opportunity, with a second serve and a break point, I had to step up and take it.”

The 31-year-old Australian is bidding to win his 29th career title. He is 7-0 in grass-court finals, with his latest triumph coming in the 2010 Gerry Weber Open title match over Roger Federer in Halle.

Hewitt is appearing in Newport for the first time since 1998. He has dropped to World No. 233 in the South African Airways ATP Rankings after being sidelined for nearly four months after toe surgery.

“It’s about getting wins and putting yourself in a position. You doubt yourself more when you’re coming back from surgery,” Hewitt said. “You can’t just click your fingers and start moving and playing the way you want to play. And that can be frustrating.

“I have small goals at the moment. I’m trying to get my movement as close to 100 per cent as possible. And be to the point where I don’t have to think about it either. You come back from surgery and you think about everything. My whole mechanics have changed. So that’s taking a bit of time.”

Roger Federer says off-court relations are fine between himself and Novak Djokovic as the pair of elites prepare for their semi-final clash at Wimbledon. 

The calm Swiss could only recall one long-ago incident, at a Davis Cup semi-final in 2006, when Djokovic seemed to step out of line. “I was just upset at him calling the trainer out for no obvious reason against my buddy, Stan, in a five-setter,” said the six-time Wimbledon winner who stands 14-12 against the Serb.

“That was it. We had a quick chat about it in Madrid after that, and things are cool since a long time between me and him. I’ve always respected him.”

Until recently, the pair worked together with Federer as president and Djokovic on the board of the ATP Player council, with Federer re-elected to the body. “Have I gone out for dinner with him? No. But I’ve had many meetings with him at the council, and then now with the Grand Slams. He’s been nice to work with. 

“We’ve met on several occasions because of other things together. I have no issues with him, and I hope you believe me.” 

The ATP announced today that no further disciplinary action will be taken against David Nalbandian, who was defaulted last Sunday from the final of the AEGON Championships at Queen’s Club. Nalbandian was sanctioned approximately USD $70,000 in prize money and fines, and 150 ranking points for unsportsmanlike conduct.  After a review of the incident, the ATP determined that although David’s actions were unacceptable and under ATP rules warranted an automatic default, the injury to the linesman was unintentional. As such, it was decided that the sanctions already levied against David are sufficient in this case.

© Bongarts/Getty ImagesRoger Federer improved to 37-4 in Halle on Thursday.

Five-time Gerry Weber Open championRoger Federer opened his title campaign on Thursday, defeating Florian Mayer 6-4, 7-5 to begin his grass-court season in Halle.

The second-seeded Federer hit 11 aces, won 76 per cent of his service points and converted two of his six break point chances to remain undefeated in four matches against Mayer.

“I’m very happy with the way things went today. I obviously knew playing against Mayer in the first round was going to be tricky,” Federer said. “He’s in the Top 30 and has been to the quarter-finals of Wimbledon. And I’ve played him here on grass before, so I know how tough he can be.

“But I felt I was focussed, was moving well and bascially, didn’t have any letdowns on my serve. I was able to create a few more chances than he did. I’m through with my first victory on grass this year and I hope it’s not my last.”

Federer was playing his first match since falling to World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the Roland Garros semi-finals. Federer has won four titles this season, in Rotterdam (d. del Potro), Dubai (d. Murray), Indian Wells (d. Isner) and Madrid (d. Berdych).

The 30-year-old Swiss, who signed a lifetime contract with the ATP World Tour 250 grass-court tournament in Halle, has a 37-4 event record, and is looking to collect his first trophy at the tournament since triumphing in 2008 over Philipp Kohlschreiber.

In the quarter-finals, Federer will clash with big-serving Milos Raonic. Federer has won both of their meetings this season in three sets, edging the Canadian in Indian Wells and Madrid.

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Wild card Tommy Haas beat Marcel Granollers 6-3, 6-4 to avenge his second-round loss to the Spaniard at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. The 33-year-old home favourite won 60 per cent of his second serve return points to break Granollers once in each set.

“He’s a very tricky player. He’s No. 22 in the world so you know what you’re going to get,” said Haas. “I played him recently in Indian Wells, where I lost a tough three setter, so I was seeking revenge. I knew I had to play some of my best tennis and I think this was one of my best matches throughout the whole year. I’m really pleased to have beaten him today.”

Haas is bidding to win his first title since lifting the Halle trophy three years ago after upsetting Novak Djokovic in the final. The 33 year old will look to equal his best season run (Munich semi-finals) when he takes on third seed and 2007 champion Tomas Berdych in the quarter-finals.

World No. 2 Rafael Nadal made his grass-court season singles debut at the Gerry Weber OpenThursday, easing past Lukas Lacko 7-5, 6-1 to claim his first victory at the event.

“At the beginning, it was more difficult to return. I tried to put more balls inside, trying to return with a bit of slice. That put me into a bit more of a rhythm,” said Nadal. “In the second set, I played with [fewer] mistakes, which is the most important thing. I’m happy. Every match here is very dangerous after playing on clay for two and a half months. Tomorrow will be another tough match.”

Nadal, returning to Halle for the first time in seven years after a first-round exit to Alexander Waske in 2005, won eight of the final nine games against Lacko to prevail in 76 minutes, improving to 4-0 against the Slovakian.

The 26-year-old Nadal is riding a 13-match win streak, having defeated top-ranked Novak Djokovic in the finals of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia and Roland Garros. Nadal’s triumph over Djokovic on Monday saw the Spaniard clinch a record-breaking seventh trophy on Parisian clay.

“I’m very happy to be in Halle after a long time without coming here,” Nadal said. “For me, it’s always special to be back in a place where I haven’t been in quite for a while.”

In the quarter-finals, Nadal will clash with reigning champion Philipp Kohlschreiber. The eighth-seeded German defeated Lukasz Kubot 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-3, winning 77 per cent of his service points and firing 11 aces. He broke Kubot four times to lock up the victory in two hours and four minutes.

“I could have won the first set but he took his chances. I also think that he didn’t play on the same level in the second and third set,” assessed Kohlschreiber. “He gave me an early break in the second which encouraged me. I always had the feeling that I was a hint better than he was. But that’s just a feeling. Sometimes you lose the first set and still think you are the better player. Fortunately, the feeling I had turned out to be true. As I said, I think he didn’t keep up his level.”

For the seventh time in eight appearances at the ATP World Tour 250 grass-court event in Halle, where he holds a 21-6 record, Kohlschreiber is through to the last eight. This year, he captured the title in Munich (d. Cilic) and reached the semi-finals in Auckland (l. to Rochus) and Montpellier (l. to Berdych).