FEDERER, WAWRINKA, TSONGA, DIMITROV, MURRAY, MONFILS ALL WINNERS IN PARIS, BNP PARIBAS BERCY

Written by: Staff on 29th October 2014

BNP Paribas 2014 Masters Tennis Tournament

FEDERER, WAWRINKA, TSONGA, DIMITROV, MURRAY, MONFILS ALL WINNERS IN PARIS, BNP PARIBAS BERCY

epa04468704 Roger Federer of Switzerland reacts during his second round match against Jeremy Chardy of France at the BNP Paribas 2014 Masters tennis tournament in Paris, France, 29 October 2014. EPA/IAN LANGSDON |

TIDBITS

* Raonic still alive in London race after nailbiting win over Sock; Ferrer edges Goffin

* Murray beats Benneteau to all but assure London spot

* Dimitrov cruises but remains far back

* Federer barely beats Chardy to keep alive hopes of reaching #1 this week

* Wawrinka finally scores an indoor victory with straight-sets win over Thiem

* Bautista Agut knocks Gasquet out of Top 25

* Qualifier Pouille eliminates Fognini, opens door for Federer

* Year will end with no Americans in Top Fifteen after Isner loses to Monfils

* Granollers/Lopez formally end Cabal/Farah’s London hopes; Pospisil/Sock lose chance

MEN’S NEWS

Paris

Singles – Second Round: (2) R Federer def. J Chardy 7-6(7-5) 6-7(5-7) 6-4

Definitely not the sort of match Roger Federer wanted as he tries to take the #1 ranking. Even though Jeremy Chardy has been fighting a foot injury, this took more than two and a half hours, and Federer blew two match points in the second set, and he hasn’t yet gained any ground on Novak Djokovic, who made the third round the previous day. Jeremy Chardy will almost certainly end the year at #29 or #30.

Singles – Second Round: (3) S Wawrinka def. D Thiem 6-4 7-6(8-6)

This doesn’t help Stan Wawrinka in the rankings, but it has to be a big relief anyway — he had lost three straight matches. Switzerland must be glad, too, to see half their Davis Cup team come to life. Dominic Thiem loses some Challenger points and will fall a spot or two.

Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland returns the ball to Dominic Thiem of Austria during their second round match at the BNP Paribas 2014 Masters tennis tournament in Paris, France, 29 October 2014. EPA/IAN LANGSDON

Dominic Thiem of Austria returns the ball to Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland during their second round match at the BNP Paribas 2014 Masters tennis tournament in Paris, France, 29 October 2014. EPA/IAN LANGSDON

Singles – Second Round: (4) D Ferrer def. D Goffin 6-3 2-6 6-3

This seemed to be a day for Race contenders to survive by the skins of their teeth. Still, David Ferrer is alive. He’s still in danger of falling to #9 in the rankings and Race — but with Rafael Nadal out, #9 will get him into London. If he can hold that spot. The good news is, he faces countryman Fernando Verdasco next, which is one of the lesser challenges faced by a London contender. David Goffin will end the year no better than #22 — still an amazing breakthrough season.

Singles – Second Round: (6) K Nishikori def. T Robredo 6-7(4-7) 6-2 6-3

Kei Nishikori was the last of the London contenders to play, and for a while it looked as if we might finally clarify things a little. Not yet — although Kei Nishikori looked rusty enough that we can’t help wonder if he’s fully fit yet. For Tommy Robredo, the loss means he will end the year below the Top Fifteen.

Kei Nishikori of Japan returns the ball to Tommy Robredo of Spain during his second round match at the BNP Paribas 2014 Masters tennis tournament in Paris, France, 29 October 2014. EPA/IAN LANGSDON

Singles – Second Round: (7) M Raonic def. (Q) J Sock 3-6 7-5 7-6(7-4)

Milos Raonic obviously came very, very close to falling out of the Race here. As it is, he’s still only #10 and needs a lot more. Jack Sock was three points away from the Top Forty; as it is, he’ll have to settle for #42 or so.

Singles – Second Round: (8) A Murray def. J Benneteau 6-3 6-4

Andy Murray clearly wants that London spot — and it’s quite clear that he’ll get it, even if he hasn’t mathematically clinched yet. Julien Benneteau won’t quite make the Top 25, but at least he too will be in London — in doubles.

Andy Murray of Britain returns the ball to Julien Benneteau of France during their second round match at the BNP Paribas 2014 Masters tennis tournament in Paris, France, 29 October 2014. EPA/IAN LANGSDON

Singles – Second Round: (9) G Dimitrov def. P Cuevas 6-0 6-3

This was a very frustrating day for Race-watchers. Murray, Nishikori, Ferrer, Raonic, Dimitrov, all through. And Dimitrov, the one with the worst chances, won by the most convincing score! He’s still only #11, and he will probably need a title to qualify, but it’s possible. He leaves Pablo Cuevas probably #34 — which still makes this probably the best year of Cuevas’s career.

Singles – Second Round: (10) J Tsonga def. (PR) J Melzer 6-2 4-6 6-2

Jurgen Melzer has spent the last year living off a protected ranking. That won’t last — and this loss means he’ll end the year below the Top Hundred. He’s going to be playing a lot of qualifying soon.

Singles – Second Round: (11) R Bautista Agut def. R Gasquet 6-4 6-2

Roberto Bautista Agut loses an optional event, so this doesn’t really help his ranking yet, but he continues to be in very good form; at the rate things are going, he could become Spain’s #2 player early next year. Richard Gasquet, who was defending big points, falls from #23 to no better than #28, meaning that he is no better than France’s #5 player (behind Tsonga, Monfils, Simon, and Benneteau), and he barely leads Jeremy Chardy. It’s going to be interesting to see who plays Davis Cup!

Singles – Second Round: (12) F Lopez def. (Q) S Querrey 6-4 6-4

Last fall, Sam Querrey seemed to be blowing off his career. This year, he’s revitalizing it. Even with the loss, it looks as if he’ll rise above #35. Start next year strong and he just might earn an Australian Open seed.

Singles – Second Round: G Monfils def. (13) J Isner 6-4 7-6(7-4)

Gael Monfils actually ended this match with more aces than John Isner (eleven versus nine), which is obviously trouble for Isner! Monfils converted only one of nine break points, but Isner never even had a break point. And Isner was defending third round points, meaning he’ll fall from #16 to no better than #18. And Monfils, who is up to #19, would pass him if he can win his next match (which, to be sure, is against Novak Djokovic). Even with the loss, Isner is the top American by about fifteen places; the year will end with no American men in the Top Fifteen. In singles, anyway; there are always the Bryans….

Gael Monfils of France returns the ball to John Isner of the US during his second round match at the BNP Paribas 2014 Masters tennis tournament in Paris, France, 29 October 2014. EPA/IAN LANGSDON

Singles – Second Round: (Q) L Pouille def. (16) F Fognini 7-6(7-5) 7-6(9-7)

How much does Fabio Fognini hate indoors? So much that he loses on the stuff to a guy ranked more than 150 places below him. It now appears Fognini will end the year in the Top Twenty, but not by much. Next up for Lucas Pouille is Roger Federer — which sounds like pretty good news for Federer….

Doubles – First Round: Anderson/Zimonjic def. Inglot/Mergea 6-3 3-6 12-10

Doubles – Second Round: Butorac/Klaasen def. (3) Benneteau/Roger-Vasselin 6-4 7-5

Butorac/Klaasen came in at #8 in the Race — but with the Grand Slam Wildcard in play, that just isn’t good enough. They’re desperately trying to reach #7. This doesn’t even bring them close, but it’s surely a nice confidence boost.

Doubles – Second Round: (5) Granollers/Lopez def. Cabal/Farah 6-3 7-6(7-4)

This makes official what became pretty clear last week: Cabal/Farah, who came in at #11 in the Race, are out of it. Granollers/Lopez would have qualified by now if it weren’t for the craziness of two teams trying for the Grand Slam Wildcard, but with this, we’d say they’re set.

Doubles – Second Round: Paes/Wawrinka def. (6) Pospisil/Sock 6-1 6-4

Pospisil/Sock pay the price for not playing the same tournaments this fall. They came in at #9 in the Race, and will be falling.

Doubles – Second Round: (7) Bopanna/Nestor def. Marrero/Verdasco 6-4 6-0

Marrero/Verdasco were only #15 in the Race, so they had no shot at direct London entry. With this, they can forget about even an alternate spot.

Doubles – Second Round: (8) Rojer/Tecau def. Kubot/Lindstedt 7-6(7-3) 3-6 10-5

This is pretty wild. Kubot/Lindstedt will qualify for London only because they didn’t get a bye. That let them earn points, and Pospisil/Sock didn’t, and so Kubot/Lindstedt get the Grand Slam wildcard. By — if we did this right — five points. It wouldn’t have happened had they been ranked higher!

ATP BARCLAYS RACE UPDATE :

Let’s start with the standard status report:

1..Djokovic………9100 MAX:.10100 * CLINCHED

2..Federer……… 8610 MAX:..9610 * CLINCHED

3..Nadal……….. 6835 MAX:..6835 * CLINCHED (but will not play)

4..Wawrinka………4895 MAX:..5895 * CLINCHED

5..Murray………..4385 MAX:..5385 *

6..Nishikori……. 4355 MAX:..5355 *

7..Berdych……… 4195 MAX:..5195 *

8..Cilic……….. 4150 MAX:..4150 * CLINCHED

9..Ferrer………..3955 MAX:..4955 *

10..Raonic………..3930 MAX:..4930 *

11..Dimitrov………3645 MAX:..4645 *

12..Tsonga………..2740 MAX:..3740 * OUT

13..Gulbis………..2455 MAX:..2455 * OUT

14..Lopez……….. 2130 MAX:..3130 * OUT

15..Bautista Agut… 2110 MAX:..3110 * OUT

We’ve been repeating this so many times, you could probably do it for us: Entering Wednesday’s action, we had four players clinched because of their high point totals: Djokovic, Federer, Nadal (who, however, will not play, leaving a spot for the #9 player), and Wawrinka. We had one player clinched by Grand Slam Wildcard: Cilic. With Nadal not playing, that leaves four open spots in London. And six contenders: Murray, Nishikori, Berdych, Ferrer, Raonic, and Dimitrov. And all of them won, so we aren’t making much progress.

Murray is pretty close to clinching. Nishkori is on his heels. Dimitrov is close to out. Everyone else is in the thick of it.

In doubles, Bryan/Bryan, Nestor/Zimonjic, Peya/Soares, and Benneteau/Roger-Vasselin were clinched when the day began. We and the ATP agree that Roger/Tecau and Granollers/Lopez are now in as well. That leaves two spots — and a complex situation, because while Dodig/Melo and Butorac/Klaasen were #7 and #8 in the Race, the #9 team was Pospisil/Sock and #10 was Kubot/Lindstedt, and both those teams were contending for the Grand Slam Wildcard. So the top contest is for the #7 spot — or for one of the Slam-winning teams to reach #8, or at least end up ahead of the other Slam-winning teams. Sock/Pospisil are out, and they didn’t reach the Top Eight. Kubot/Lindstedt followed them out, but because they earned more points than Pospisil/Sock, they get the wildcard and Pospisil/Sock are out of London. (Yes, we have a Slam-winning team that won’t qualify!) So it’s Dodig/Melo and Butorac/Klaasen fighting for the #7 spot, with Butorac/Klaasen needing a final to have a shot.

RANKINGS

Estimated ATP World Tour Rankings

As of October 29, 2014

Rank &

Prior…Player………..Points

1..(1) Djokovic………..9100

2..(2) Federer…………8610

3..(3) Nadal…………..6835

4..(4) Wawrinka………..4895

5..(8) Murray………….4385

6..(7) Nishikori……….4355

7..(5) Berdych…………4195

8..(9) Cilic…………..4150

9..(6) Ferrer………….3955

10.(10) Raonic………….3930

11.(11) Dimitrov………..3645

12.(12) Tsonga………….2740

13.(13) Gulbis………….2455

14.(14) Lopez…………..2130

15.(15) Bautista Agut……2065

16.(17) Robredo…………2015

17.(18) Anderson………..1990

18.(16) Isner…………..1890

19.(21) Monfils…………1825

20.(20) Fognini…………1790

21.(19) Simon…………..1730

22.(22) Goffin………….1611

23.(25) Dolgopolov………1455

24.(24) Kohlschreiber……1415

25.(26) Mayer…………..1399

26.(27) Karlovic………..1365

26.(28) Benneteau……….1365

28.(23) Gasquet…………1350

29.(30) Chardy………….1240

30.(29) Rosol…………..1210

DRAWS

Paris — Week of October 27, 2014

……………….3R

1 Djokovic………(1)Djokovic

13 Isner………..Monfils

9 Dimitrov………(9)Dimitrov

8 Murray………..(8)Murray

4 Ferrer………..(4)Ferrer

15 Simon………..Verdasco

10 Tsonga ………(10)Tsonga

6 Nishikori……..(6)Nishikori

5 Berdych……….(5)Berdych

12 Lopez………..(12)Lopez

14 Anderson……..(14)Anderson

3 Wawrinka………(3)Wawrinka

7 Raonic………..(7)Raonic

11 Bautista Agut…(11)Bautista Agut

16 Fognini………Pouille(Q)

2 Federer……….(2)Federer

STATUS OF SEEDS

1 Djokovic

2 Federer

3 Wawrinka

4 Ferrer

5 Berdych

6 Nishikori

7 Raonic

8 Murray

9 Dimitrov

10 Tsonga

11 Bautista Agut

12 Lopez

13 Isner……….lost 2R (Monfils)

14 Anderson

15 Simon……….lost 2R (Verdasco)

16 Fognini……..lost 2R (Pouille)

SCORES

WEDNESDAY

Paris

Singles – Second Round

(2) R Federer def. J Chardy 7-6(7-5) 6-7(5-7) 6-4

(3) S Wawrinka def. D Thiem 6-4 7-6(8-6)

(4) D Ferrer def. D Goffin 6-3 2-6 6-3

(6) K Nishikori def. T Robredo 6-7(4-7) 6-2 6-3

(7) M Raonic def. (Q) J Sock 3-6 7-5 7-6(7-4)

(8) A Murray def. J Benneteau 6-3 6-4

(9) G Dimitrov def. P Cuevas 6-0 6-3

(10) J Tsonga def. (PR) J Melzer 6-2 4-6 6-2

(11) R Bautista Agut def. R Gasquet 6-4 6-2

(12) F Lopez def. (Q) S Querrey 6-4 6-4

G Monfils def. (13) J Isner 6-4 7-6(7-4)

(Q) L Pouille def. (16) F Fognini 7-6(7-5) 7-6(9-7)

Doubles – First Round

Anderson/Zimonjic def. Inglot/Mergea 6-3 3-6 12-10

Doubles – Second Round

Butorac/Klaasen def. (3) Benneteau/Roger-Vasselin 6-4 7-5

(5) Granollers/Lopez def. Cabal/Farah 6-3 7-6(7-4)

Paes/Wawrinka def. (6) Pospisil/Sock 6-1 6-4

(7) Bopanna/Nestor def. Marrero/Verdasco 6-4 6-0

(8) Rojer/Tecau def. Kubot/Lindstedt 7-6(7-3) 3-6 10-5

VIA BOB LARSON TENNIS NEWS.

Topics: Andy Murray, draws & results, GRIGOR DIMITROV, Jeremy Chardy, Jo Wilfried Tsonga, milos raonic, Novak Djokovic, Paris, Roger Federer, Stan Wawrinka, Tennis, tennis updates

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October 29, 2014 at 9:11 pm

@rogerfederer, @stanwawrinka, @tsonga7, @GrigorDimitrov, @andy_murray, MONFILS ALL WINNERS IN #PARIS, #BNPPARIBAS- http://t.co/X7DqFbacjM