ATP London Race (20 Oct 14): Murray Moves Ahead; Federer Looks To Close No. 1 Gap In Basel
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With just two weeks to go, the Race for the London finals is really heating up. Already five spots have been booked with Kei Nishikori and Tomas Berdych all but assured berths in the prestigious year-end event.
That leaves one remaining spot open and right now thanks to a second title in four weeks it belongs to Andy Murray. The Scot now holds a significant 110 point lead over No. 9 David Ferrer who is also in Valencia as a 3-time champion. With 500 points up for grab this week, a Murray-Ferrer semifinal would be huge.
“The next few weeks are extremely important,” Murray said today after winning his 30th career title in Valencia. “Everyone is playing next week. I just need to win as many matches as possible to keep hold of the eighth spot [in the Emirates ATP Race To London] or go higher.”
If both Murray and Ferrer stumble, youngsters Milos Raonic and Grigor Dimitrov could rise up into the mix, but the two will have a tougher go in Basel where Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Stan Wawrinka are the top seeds. Raonic and Dimitrov are on opposite sides of the draw with the Canadian paired alongside Nadal and Dimitrov with Federer in the QF and Wawrinka in the SF.
In the No. 1 Race, Roger Federer, just 990 points from Novak Djokovic, can close the gap by 500 by winning in Basel. The idle Djokovic is expecting the birth of his first child in the next few weeks. And Federer could make up even more ground or possibly take the lead with a strong performance next week in Paris.
ATP Race to London Standings as of October 20, 2014
1 Novak Djokovic 9,010*
2 Roger Federer 8,020* (Basel)
3 Rafael Nadal 6,745* (Basel)
4 Stan Wawrinka 4,805* (Basel)
5 Kei Nishikori 4,265
6 Marin Cilic 4,150+
7 Tomas Berdych 4,105 (Valencia)
8 Andy Murray 3,885 (Valencia)
9 David Ferrer 3,775 (Valencia)
10 Milos Raonic 3,750 (Basel)
11 Grigor Dimitrov 3,555 (Basel)
* = clinched London berth; + = Grand Slam champion wildcard London berth
Race Points This Week in Basel/Valencia
W 500
F 300
SF 180
QF 90
R16 45
R32 0
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