Edberg, Rios on Algarve Collision Course

Former World Number One players Stefan Edberg and Marcelo Rios could meet on the ATP Champions Tour for the first time when the Vale Do Lobo Grand Champions CGD kicks off this week. The pair have been drawn into opposite groups for the event which begins on Tuesday. They can only clash in Friday’s final. On the ATP World Tour, they played only once, a match that Edberg won 6-3, 6-3 in Rome in 1995, but their contrasting styles should make for fascinating viewing.

Edberg, one of the most classical serve-and-volley exponents ever to pick up a tennis racquet, will be making his debut at the popular event in Algarve. Rios, the 2006 and 2008 champion, will be looking to regain his form after losing all three of his matches in Sao Paulo, Brazil recently.

To reach the final, Edberg will need to find a way past another former World No.1 Thomas Muster, who replaces the injured Mats Wilander. Edberg beat Muster in all of their ten meetings on the ATP World Tour and again when they faced each other, on clay, at the Trophee Jean Luc Lagardere in Paris last year. Henri Leconte and Sao Paulo finalist Fernando Meligeni will also provide stiff opposition for Edberg in Portugal. Rios will be up against the 1997 US Open finalist Greg Rusedski, big-hitting Marc-Kevin Goellner and local favourite, Nuno Marques.

On Tuesday, Rios will face Marques in the first match of the day. Matches begin at 5pm local time because of the searing heat. After that will be a battle between two left-handers - Muster and Meligeni, followed by Rusedski against Goellner, and finally Edberg will take on Leconte.

All players in each group will play each other over a round-robin format, and after all round-robin matches are complete, the top player in each group will meet in the final. The runners-up in each group will play off for the third place position. Matches are played over the best of three sets with a Champions’ Tie-break (first to 10 points with a clear advantage of two) deciding the winner of matches that are tied at one-set-all.

To be eligible to compete on the ATP Champions Tour, players must be either a former World Number One, a former Grand Slam champion or finalist, or a singles player on a Davis Cup-winning team. Each even can also invite two wild cards of its choice.

After Algarve, the ATP Champions Tour will move on to Paris, France for the Trophee Jean Luc Lagardere, 24-27 September.

To view the week’s order of play in Algarve, click on Results. For the most up-to-the-minute scores, gossip and chat from behind the scenes, follow us on Twitter.