ATP

• Federer should have his hands full in London

  
  

  London, England (Sports Network) - The draw was revealed Wednesday for the 2009 ATP World Tour finals, and world No. 1 Roger Federer is in the same round-robin group as heavy British favorite Andy Murray and U.S. Open champion Juan Martin del Potro, who upset the Swiss superstar back in New York in September.

  The top-seeded Federer headlines Group A, which is rounded out by a fourth- seeded Murray, a fifth-seeded del Potro and seventh-seeded Fernando Verdasco, who will make his Tour Finals debut.

  Federer is the reigning Wimbledon and French Open champ and captured this prestigious eight-player ATP event in 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2007 and was the runner-up in 2005.

  A four-player Group B features second-seeded Rafael Nadal, red-hot third- seeded Novak Djokovic, sixth-seeded Nikolay Davydenko and eighth-seeded French Open runner-up Robin Soderling, who will make his Tour Finals debut after replacing injured Wimbledon runner-up Andy Roddick in the field here on Tuesday.

  Nadal is the reigning Australian Open titlist, while the surging Djokovic has won three of his last four tournaments, including two straight. He toppled Federer in a final in the Swiss great's hometown of Basel two weeks ago, and is fresh off his Masters championship in Paris last week.

  Djokovic is also the reigning ATP World Tour Finals champ, having beaten Davydenko in last year's finale, when it was called the Tennis Masters Cup, in Shanghai, which hosted the event from 2005-08.

  The first alternate here in London will be flashy Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, last year's Aussie Open runner-up to Djokovic.

  Round-robin play will determine the semifinalists here, with play commencing Sunday at O2 Arena.

  11/18 12:02:50 ET