US Open Finalists, Federer-del Potro in Same Group

With 16 Grand Slams under his belt, many think that the Roger Federer phenomenon is quickly running out of steam. A loss in the US Open final only seems to have made the arguments stronger for Federer's critics. However, Roger himself says that he is in no way thinking about the end of his career. "Motivation for me is really not a problem because I love tennis too much just to say 'I have won all the slams and two beautiful daughters and a wife - I'm happy so I'll leave."

Even though he admits that his personal life has become a lot more hectic lately, as Federer got married and is the father of two baby girls, yet he confirms that his passion for the sport is still there. Losing the US Open to Del Potro has only made him more determined to play harder. And with Federer getting a tough draw for the ATP World Tour Finals, he will most definitely have to play his best to win.

The ATP World Tour Finals is the last big event of the year, and is also the biggest indoor tennis tournament. It will be held in London, at the O2 Arena. Players for this tournament are determined by the ATP rankings, with only the top eight seeds getting to play. While Federer has won this event four times in the past, this year might prove to be the toughest challenge for him.

With US Open champion Juan Martin del Potro in the same group, Federer will have to be at his sublime best to advance here. Besides del Potro, Federer's group also includes Andy Murray and Fernando Verdasco. Being a round robin tournament, only the top two players from each group will advance to the semis.

The other group features world number 2 Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Nikolay Davydenko and Robin Soderling. Soderling, seeded 9th in the world, takes Andy Roddick's place, who is suffering from a knee injury, and will not be able to compete. So, even assuming that Roger Federer makes it to the semis, he has his work cut out for him if he wants to win here. One thing that fans can be sure of is that, being a highly competitive player, Roger Federer will definitely be looking to avenge his US Open defeat to Juan Martin del Potro.

A win in this tournament will also give Roger the 2009 World ATP Tour Champion title. However, with world number 2, Rafael Nadal trailing by just 900 odd points, the 1500 points awarded for the title here will be fiercely contested. With more than just pride at stake, this is one tournament you would not want to miss watching. The tournament starts on Sunday, 22nd November, with the finals being held on the 29th.