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With two remaining weeks on the ATP World Tour calender, the world's best will gather in Basel, Switzerland, and Valencia, Spain to take part in two respective 500 point events.
After enduring a layoff after his US Open campaign, Roger Federer returns to the courts of his native Basel to defend his hometown tournament.
This year's edition of the Davidoff Swiss Indoors Basel will hold particular importance for Federer, who is not only attempting to win his fourth consecutive title, but will be participating in a Stadium named after him.
With his French Open win earlier this year, tournament organizers thought it would appropriate to rename the grounds after the world No. 1.
Federer will be joined in Basel by an impressive cast of competitors which will include, No. 2 seed Novak Djokovic, No. 3 seed Fernando Gonzalez and No. 4 seed Marin Cilic.
The 32-man draw will feature other notables, Ivo Karlovic, Ivan Ljubicic and Richard Gasquet.
The first prize winner of the event will take home € 291,700, and as mentioned 500 ATP World Tour points.
Onto the inaugural Valencia Open event, and the return of Andy Murray.
The Scot has been sidelined since his Davis Cup participation in England, which took place shortly after his fourth round exit at the US Open. The world No. 4, who will be the top seed this week in Spain, will have a hefty cast of characters to deal with if he is to capture his sixth title of the season.
The beautiful state-of-the-art Agora building, which seats 5,500 spectators, truly stands alone in modern day tennis facilities. The fin shaped glass roof will overlook the weeks action, while adding natural light to all the day matches.
Murray will be joined in Valencia by, No. 2 seed Nikolay Davydenko, No. 3 seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and No. 4 seed Fernando Verdasco.
Other unseeded notables in the field will include, Valencia native Juan Carlos Ferrero, Tomas Berdych and Leonardo Mayer.
The first prize winner of the 500 point event will collect € 323,000 in prize money.
Without further adieu, let's take a look at the top and bottom halves of both the Basel and Valencia draws.
Davidoff Swiss Indoors Basel
Top half:
The draw gods were certainly kind to Federer in his return to competitive play. The world No. 1 will take on a qualifier in round one, with either Andreas Seppi or Stephane Bohli being his second round opponent.
Seppi is a more seasoned player than his first round Swiss rival. However, Bohli is playing at home and could cause an upset. Either way, Federer should easily dispatch either foe to reach the quarterfinals.
In the final eight, the 15-time Grand Slam champ could face No. 8 seed James Blake or French sensation Jeremy Chardy. Blake and Chardy will face off in round, with the winner likely reaching the quarterfinals.
The good news for Federer is that he holds a 9-1 head-to-head lead over Blake, losing to the American during the 2008 summer Olympics.
Federer and Chardy have never met on Tour, with the young French star needing to become more consistent in order to scare the top seed.
Federer's semifinal opponent could very well be either No. 3 seed Fernando Gonzalez, No. 8 seed Philipp Kohlscrieber, Richard Gasquet or John Inser.
The Swiss holds a commanding 22-2 head-to-head lead over Gonzalez, Kohlscrieber and Gasquet combined, while ousting Isner during their lone battle at the 2007 US Open.
All in all, this week will marks Federer's return home for the first time since breaking the all time Grand Slam record at Wimbledon. A former ball boy at the event, Federer will be the odds on favorite to take home his fourth straight title and fifth of the season.
Pick: Federer
Bottom half:
No. 2 seed Novak Djokovic, who will be making his first appearance in Basel, will attempt to add to his recent good form on Tour, which saw him win the Beijing title and reach the semifinals at the Shanghai Masters 1000.
Djokovic will begin his Basel campaign against German Andreas Beck. Beck, who possesses a dangerous left-handed first serve, will provide a significant challenge for Djokovic in round one. The pair have never faced on tour, but with indoor courts being Beck's preferred surface, an early scare for Djokovic may be in order.
The quarterfinals could bring forth the challenge of No. 6 seed Stan Wawrinka or resurgent Croat Ivan Ljubicic. Wawrinka will be eager to put on a fine display for his hometown fans, while Ljubicic, who recently won in Lyon should be one to watch this week. Djokovic holds a combined 10-3 head-to-head lead over Wawrinka and Ljubicic.
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