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TORONTO: No. 2 Rafael Nadal and third-ranked Novak Djokovic were
smelling blood Thursday, less than 24 hours after Roger Federer’s
untimely second-round ouster at the Association of Tennis
Professionals (ATP) Toronto Masters Series event.
The pursuing pair—Nadal in the runaway lead
between them—are moving toward a possible changing of the guard at
the top of tennis after 234 weeks of the Swiss reign.
Djokovic staked his continuing claim, coming
back after a Wimbledon second-round elimination, to reach the
quarterfinals with a defeat of Swede Robin Soderling, 6-4, 6-4.
Nadal secured easy passage over Russian Igor
Andreev, 6-2, 7-6 (7-1), winning his 58th match of the season as he
aims for a seventh title of 2008.
“It was much better for me than yesterday,”
said Nadal. “I’m happy to get to the quarterfinals for the first
time in Toronto.”
Nothing can happen at the summit this week,
according to the ATP number crunchers.
Nadal currently stands 770 points behind Federer,
who lost his second match in a row after falling to Nadal in a
Wimbledon final classic three weeks ago.
The Spaniard could cut that margin to a mere 275
should he win the title on Sunday for a second of his career in
Canada.
Nadal, who has beaten Federer in four finals
this year including Roland Garros and Wimbledon, continues to play
the modesty card.
As usual, Nadal refuses to consider himself the
heir apparent despite his recent success, which has featured
victories over Federer in four major finals this season, including
Roland Garros and Wimbledon.
“I’m having a good season, but still I’m
still number two, “ said the Spaniard. “I still have the same
motivation to continue improving.
Australian Open champion Djokovic is equally
motivated.
“I just want to keep my focus about my career.
If I continue going forward the same way, the results will come,”
Djokovic said. “I played the best tennis of my career in the first
six months of the year.”
-- AFP
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