With only the Paris Masters 1000 event left to play before the World Tour Finals in London there are still 2 places up for grabs and as many as 7 players who could yet fill them. Thiem and Cilic are reasonably strong favourites to fill those spots, with Berdych and Goffin closest to benefit from any slip ups. Tsonga, Bautista Agut and Pouille could qualify also but would need to win the Masters 1000 title and rely on at least some other results going their way too. All the scenarios and what each players has to do are in the table below. There are some brutal permutations…
Cilic’s win today in Basel – and the extra 200 points he earned – makes it that much more likely that he qualifies for the World Tour Finals in London, and makes the task for Berdych and Goffin that little bit harder. Key matches nevertheless are round 3 matches between Goffin and Cilic and between Berdych and Bautista Agut.
Of course, those hoping to appear in London are not the only ones motivated in Paris: the number one ranking is on the line this week as well. Defeating Murray or Djokovic to qualify for London is a difficult task made even harder.
If you right-click the picture below and open in a new tab, the writing is easier to read!
Featured image credit: Croatia’s Marin Cilic celebrates after wining the final match against Japan’s Kei Nishikori at the Swiss Indoors tennis tournament at the St. Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland, Sunday, Oct. 30, 2016. Georgios Kefalas/Keystone via AP
Cleaning the lines 