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Which four players will be there at the business end of the US Open?

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Sky Sports' Barry Millns looks at the players he expects to win their respective quarters in the men's draw

Bidding to become the first man to win four consecutive US Open titles since Bill Tilden in 1923, Roger Federer made a confident start on his return to New York. Just three grand slams short of equalling Pete Sampras' record haul of 14, the world No.1 is odds-on favourite (1.12) to win his quarter, having reached eight finals in 11 tournaments so far this season and won five of them.

Federer's 50th career title came in Cincinnati two weeks ago, where Andy Roddick (7), the man he is seeded to meet in the quarterfinals of this Open, and who was runner-up to him last year, suffered an early loss as the defending champion.

The leading American has been playing too defensively for his own good and has lost 13 of 14 encounters with Federer, including the last nine. Roddick may be hard pressed even to reach the last eight with big servers Tomas Berdych (10.5) and Ivo Karlovic (20), who have both beaten him before on hard courts, in his section.

As Juan Carlos Ferrero and Jarkko Nieminen are already out of contention, Richard Gasquet (8.2) is the first seed Federer could face, in the fourth round. Before that though he may have to deal with the giant young American John Isner (30) who served 34 aces on his grand slam debut!

Picking a winner of the other quarter in the top half of the draw is not as straightforward. The 4th seed Nikolai Davydenko (3.05) made the semi-finals last year but since reaching the last four of the French Open his form has dipped and James Blake (2.72) is being backed to reach the semis in New York for the first time, having made the quarters for the past two years.

Two weeks ago Blake beat Davydenko in Cincinnati to reach the final and last Saturday he picked up his 10th career title in New Haven. That said, teenage compatriot Sam Querrey (32), who beat Blake in Indianapolis after serving 34 aces (including 10 in a row) could test him in the third round, while Tommy Haas (5.6) could pose another threat in the fourth.

For Davydenko, while Nicolas Almagro (12.5) and Guillermo Canas (8.8) are among the seeds in his section, Andy Murray (6.8) may be a tougher opponent, having begun with a confidence boosting win following his wrist injury. Prior to suffering that setback in May, the young Scot was playing tennis of the highest calibre and had already won both encounters this year with Davydenko.

Novak Djokovic (2.06) stands out in the third quarter, having already won two hard court Masters Series titles in Miami and Montreal, the latter achieved with successive wins over the world's top three at the time - Roddick, Nadal and Federer. The power and poise shown there by the young Serb confirmed him as a major force and on this surface, second only to Federer as favourite for the Open.

Former champion Lleyton Hewitt (3) and another former world No.1 Carlos Moya (10), both enjoying resurgences this year, should also feature through the first week while Mikhail Youzhny (6), a surprise semi-finalist last year, remains a threat although he looked jaded in the build-up.

As for Rafael Nadal (1.4), upset by Youzhny in 2006, the world No.2 should be able to deal with the likes of the in-form David Ferrer (11.5) and the fading David Nalbandian (12.5) to reach the quarters. Fernando Gonzalez (7.6), Ivan Ljubicic (11.5) or former champion Marat Safin (12.5) could meet him there, but none have been at their best lately and Nadal should make it to a mouth-watering semi-final clash with Djokovic.