Raonic, Zverev, Monfils, Kyrgios in Stuttgart - what about Federer?
After the promises to start from the German number one Alexander Zverev and the Australian “enfant terribles” Nick Kyrgios , the next sounding names have now confirmed their participation in the MercedesCupworth 780,570 euros from June 6th to 14th, 2020 at the Weissenhof in Stuttgart ! We are talking about the man of the hour on the ATP tour, the French tennis entertainer Gael Monfils , and the powerful Canadian Milos Raonic .
by PM / red
last edit: Feb 23, 2020, 09:27 am
Gael Monfils had an excellent start to the 2020 season! The 33-year-old celebrated two tournament victories in Montpellier and Rotterdam within two weeks, although he successfully defended his title at the ATP 500 event in the Netherlands without losing a set. Monfils has been unbeaten for nine matches and has an impressive 13 wins this year, with only two defeats. With his latest triumphs, the crowd favorite has now conquered ten ATP titles and also reached at least one final on the ATP tour 16 years in a row (2005 to 2020)! In this statistic, Monfils ranks second behind Roger Federer (20 seasons / 2000-2019) and Rafael Nadal (16 / 2004-2019). Behind it is Novak Djokovic (15 / 2006-2020) fourth in this "ranking".
Monfils (ATP-9) is the second top ten star after Alexander Zverev (ATP-7) to serve at this year's MercedesCup. In Stuttgart, the Frenchman reached the final in 2010 - at that time still on clay. At the first lawn tournament at the TC Weissenhof in 2015, he was in the semi-finals. “Stuttgart is a very special tournament with a special flair, so I always enjoy coming back there. A win at the MercedesCup would be extremely important to me, ”says Monfils.
Monfils, Zverev, Raonic, Kyrgios - dazzling types of players in Stuttgart
Milos Raonic is one of the strongest lawn players on the ATP tour. The 29-year-old reached the final at the 2018 MercedesCup and once again demonstrated his qualities on the green surface in Stuttgart last year by pushing to the semi-finals. In addition, Raonic was in the final of the ATP 500 event at the Queen's Club in London and the Grand Slam tournament in Wimbledon in 2016. Raonic is playing big at the ATP Tour 250 tournament in Delray Beach this week.
With the move into the quarter-finals at the Australian Open in Melbourne, the right-hander also made an exclamation mark at the beginning of the 2020 season. Raonic caused a sensation in "Down Under", especially with the impressive three-set result in the third round against the Greek world ranking sixth Stefanos Tsitsipas. “Gael Monfils is a great addition to any tournament due to his attractive style of play, and Milos Raonic is always one of the contenders, especially on turf. With the top stars Gael Monfils, Milos Raonic, Alexander Zverev and Nick Kyrgios we present four dazzling types of players with great traction at this year's MercedesCup, ”explains tournament director Edwin Weindorfer.
Federer to Stuttgart after the break?
Roger Federer is a man who has experience in Stuttgart and won the 2018 grass tournament. The Swiss has to take several months off due to knee surgery and does not want to come back until after the French Open. Starting in Halle / Westphalia is a fixed point. But the TC Weißenhof also offered a good stage for a comeback in the week before Halle.