Roger Federer is one win away from No. 1.
Next Monday, Federer will become the oldest-ever top-ranked player in ATP Tour history if he beats Robin Haase in the quarterfinals of the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament on Friday night. The 36-year-old would break the age record currently held by Andre Agassi, who was 33 the last time he held the No. 1 spot.
Only a third career meeting with Robin Haase stands in Federer’s way. The head-to-head series stands at 2-0 in favor of the 20-time Grand Slam champion, who cruised 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 in a clay-court Davis Cup tie in the Netherlands five years ago and also prevailed 6-3, 7-6(5) in the Montreal semifinals last summer.
Federer’s summer was highlighted by another triumph at Wimbledon, which gave him two major titles in 2017 and put him in contention for the No. 1 ranking in the latter stages of the season. The Swiss did not quit get there, but thanks to more outstanding play–including a successful Australian Open title defense–he is once again on the brink. Federer has improved to 9-0 this year with straight-set victories this week over Ruben Bemelmans and Philipp Kohlschreiber.
“I played at the Australian Open not thinking about the rankings, but I knew I had the flexibility in February over my calendar,” Rotterdam’s top seed explained. “After the Australian Open was over, I thought I’d love to play Rotterdam and give it a go…. You have to do it, not because it’s the right thing to do, but you have to be here with all your heart and really go for it. Try my very best. Having the option of getting to number one is highly motivating and very exciting to say the least.”
This is a big match, too, for Haase in front of the home fans. The 42nd-ranked Dutchman booked his spot in the last eight of this 500-point tournament by taking out countrymen Thiemo De Bakker and Tallon Griekspoor in easy straight sets. Haase has played at every opportunity this season and is sporting a decent 7-6 record for his efforts, with a quarterfinal performance in Pune and a semifinal showing in Auckland.
Federer was not at his absolute best against Kohlschreiber during a hard-fought 7-6(8), 7-5 victory on Thursday, so the door may be ever-so-slightly open for Haase. Like the German, however, Haase often struggles on big points and that will likely be his downfall even if he simply does well enough to be somewhat competitive against Federer.
Pick: Federer in 2 losing 8-10 games
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