Tennis Canada – World No. 1 Novak Djokovic and No. 4 seed Canadian Milos Raonic placed in same half, could face off in the semifinals

Toronto, July 22, 2016 – The official draw for the 2016 Rogers Cup presented by National Bank in Toronto was conducted on Friday at Rogers Centre. Canadian star and recent Wimbledon finalist Milos Raonic will take on the winner of Yen-Hsun Lu and rising star, 19-year-old Alexander Zverev in his opening match, while top-seeded Novak Djokovic will face either Dimitry Tursunov or Gilles Muller in the second round.

The Top 8 seeds all receive a first-round bye. Djokovic and Raonic have been placed in the same half of the draw, meaning they could meet in the semifinals. En route, Djokovic could see No. 5 seed Tomas Berdych in the quarter-finals. The world No. 1 will be aiming to clinch his fourth Rogers Cup title following his wins in 2007, 2011, and 2012. Raonic, a 2013 Rogers Cup finalist, has a potential quarter-final duel with No. 7 seed David Goffin.

Two-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka, who was on hand for the official draw, is seeded No. 2 and will anchor the bottom half of the draw. His first match will see him take on the winner of Mikhail Youzhny opposite Stephane Robert. Should the seeds hold, he would face No. 3 seed Kei Nishikori in the semifinals, and No. 6 seed Dominic Thiem in the round of eight. The No. 8 seed is 2014 US Open champion Marin Cilic, who is in the same quarter as Nishikori.

There are several exciting first-round duels set to take place over the first two days of main draw play, highlighted by 17-year-old Canadian Denis Shapovalov challenging No. 11 seed Nick Kyrgios in his Rogers Cup debut. Another teenaged up-and-comer making his first appearance in Toronto is Taylor Fritz of the United States, against big-serving Croatian Ivo Karlovic. Other players in action will include Gael Monfils, John Isner, and next generation star Borna Coric.

Vasek Pospisil’s first-round match will be against Frenchman Jeremy Chardy, currently ranked world No. 38. Three other Canadians are in the main draw as well – Frank Dancevic will face Sam Querrey, Steven Diez will be up against Brit Kyle Edmund, and Peter Polansky will take on a qualifier.

Several other Canadians will be competing this weekend for one of seven qualifier positions in the main draw. Felix Auger-Aliassime, Philip Bester, Benjamin Sigouin, and Brayden Schnur will be in action tomorrow, as part of Pizzaville Free Community Weekend this Saturday July 23 and Sunday July 24, with admission free for everyone for the two days.  

Click here to view the complete main draw.

Owned and operated by Tennis Canada, Rogers Cup presented by National Bank runs from July 23-31 at Aviva Centre in Toronto and will offer fans a chance to get closer to the best players of the ATP World Tour. For more information and tickets, please visit rogerscup.com. 

About Rogers Cup presented by National Bank
Rogers Cup presented by National Bank is a Tennis Canada owned and operated world-class tournament celebrating its 136th anniversary of the men’s event from July 23-31 at Aviva Centre in Toronto and its 124th anniversary of the women’s event from July 22-31 at Uniprix Stadium in Montreal. As an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament, Premier 5 WTA tournament and Emirates Airline U.S. Open Series event, Rogers Cup presented by National Bank will showcase the world’s best players. Rogers Cup presented by National Bank is the third-oldest title in tennis, behind only Wimbledon and the U.S. Open. For more information and tickets visit www.rogerscup.com.

About Tennis Canada
Founded in 1890, Tennis Canada is a non-profit, national sport association with a mission to lead the growth of tennis in Canada and a vision to become a world-leading tennis nation. We value teamwork, passion, integrity, innovation and excellence. Tennis Canada owns and operates the premier Rogers Cup presented by National Bank WTA and ATP World Tour events, eight professional ITF-sanctioned events and financially supports 15 other professional tournaments in Canada. Tennis Canada operates national junior training centres/programs in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Tennis Canada is a proud member of the International Tennis Federation, the Canadian Olympic Committee, the Canadian Paralympic Committee and the International Wheelchair Tennis Association, and serves to administer, sponsor and select the teams for Davis Cup, Fed Cup, the Olympic and Paralympic Games and all wheelchair, junior and senior national teams. Tennis Canada invests its surplus into tennis development. For more information on Tennis Canada, please visit our website at www.tenniscanada.com and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

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Media Contacts:
Sarah Grossman, National Manager, Communications and Media Relations, Professional Tennis, Tennis Canada
             416-650-7922, or sgrossman@tenniscanada.com
Nicole Watts, Manager, Communications, Tennis Canada
             416-665-9777 ext. 4092, or nwatts@tenniscanada.com