Daniil Medvedev and Carlos Alcaraz are among those who have made the journey from Montreal to Cincinnati this week as they prepare to compete in the seventh ATP Masters 1000 event of the season at the Western & Southern Open.
Medvedev, who lifted the trophy in 2019, will face stiff competition from two-time Masters 1000 champion Alcaraz and Spaniard Rafael Nadal, who will try to win his 37th Masters 1000 crown in Cincinnati.
Taylor Fritz leads home hopes, while a string of stars will be aiming for deep runs to help boost their Nitto ATP Finals qualification chances.
ATPTour.com looks ahead at 10 things to watch in Cincinnati.
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1) Medvedev’s No. 1 Status: Medvedev arrives in Cincinnati aiming to secure his World No. 1 status after a disappointing second-round exit against Nick Kyrgios in Montreal left the door ajar for Nadal. The 26-year-old will guarantee his place at the top of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings if he secures two wins at the Masters 1000 event where he triumphed in 2019.
Top seed Medvedev, who also reached the semi-finals in Ohio last season, captured his only title of the year on the hard courts in Los Cabos earlier this month.
2) Nadal In Pursuit: Nadal will take to court for the first time since an abdominal tear forced him to pull out of Wimbledon before the semi-finals in July. The Spaniard, who has lifted 36 Masters 1000 trophies, including a Cincinnati triumph in 2013, will return to No. 1 if he wins the title and Medvedev fails to reach the quarter-finals.
The 36-year-old is making his first appearance in Ohio since 2017 and will be looking to clinch his fifth title of the season and improve on his standout 35-3 record.
3) Alcaraz Chasing Third Masters Crown: #NextGenATP Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz was ranked outside the Top 50 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings when he made his debut in Cincinnati last year. Now the 19-year-old is in the Top 5 and is seeded third in Ohio. Alcaraz holds a 12-3 record on hard courts this season, highlighted by his title run in Miami in April.
The 2021 Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals champion will face American wild card Mackenzie McDonald or Nikoloz Basilashvili in his opening match.
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