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The huge advantage Federer is handing Nadal ahead of US Open

sam goodwin
Sports Editor

Roger Federer’s decision to shake-up his US Open preparations has seen him hand Rafael Nadal a massive boost.

Federer has changed his traditional hard-court schedule as he begins his bid to end a 10-year title drought at Flushing Meadows.

The 36-year-old, whose last match was a shock five-set loss to Kevin Anderson in the Wimbledon quarter-finals, has withdrawn from the Canadian Open in Toronto.

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The decision reduces the 20-time major winner’s plans to just one warm-up tournament – the Cincinnati Masters – before the US Open, in a return to the more compact August schedule that led to two finals in 2015.

Whether the decision results in success at Flushing Meadows remains to be seen, but what is certain is the hit that Federer will take in the race to end the year as World No.1.

Nadal is currently in top spot with 8310 points, 2230 ahead of No.2 Federer at 7080.

SHANGHAI, CHINA – OCTOBER 15: Roger Federer of Switzerland with Rafael Nadal of Spain pose with their trophies after the Men’s singles final mach on day eight of 2017 ATP Shanghai Rolex Masters at Qizhong Stadium on October 15, 2017 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)
SHANGHAI, CHINA – OCTOBER 15: Roger Federer of Switzerland with Rafael Nadal of Spain pose with their trophies after the Men’s singles final mach on day eight of 2017 ATP Shanghai Rolex Masters at Qizhong Stadium on October 15, 2017 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)

But the Swiss legend will drop down to 5480 after Toronto because he won’t have defended his points for making last year’s final.

Nadal can increase his lead to a whopping 3740 points by winning the title.

Federer will be able to get 1000 points back by winning in Cincinnati and Nadal will be defending 2000 at the US Open (which he won in 2017), but a deep run in Toronto will go a long way to shoring up Nadal’s attempt to be year-end No.1 for the second-straight year.

Last year, Federer first played in Toronto, losing the final, before taking two weeks off and eventually losing in the US Open quarter-finals.

“I’m so disappointed not to play at the Rogers Cup (in Toronto) this summer,” Federer said earlier this week.

“I had a fantastic time in Montreal last year and always enjoy playing in front of the Canadian fans.

“But unfortunately with scheduling being the key to my longevity moving forward, I have regrettably decided to withdraw from Toronto this year.”

The Toronto and Cincinnati tournaments run back-to-back across the first two weeks of August, with the US Open beginning on August 27 to end a busy month of action for the world’s best players.

Federer, who will celebrate his 37th birthday on August 8, is currently the only member of the top 20 to have pulled out of one of the two warm-up events.

Nadal and Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic are among the players scheduled to appear at both tournaments.