Look no further than center court at the Masters Series Paris to find out just what the Masters Cup means to the players…and the fans. Gilles Simon enjoyed Davis Cup-esque support on Wednesday afternoon throughout his straight-set win over Igor Andreev. Of course he is going to be a crowd favorite in Paris, as a Frenchman, playing against a Russian, but to that extent under normal circumstances? No way.
Simon entered Paris in the coveted eighth spot with 341 points. He got seven more automatically for reaching the second round via bye, and an additional eight by defeating Andreev. That leaves Simon with 356 points as of Wednesday evening.
Five spots have been clinched by Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, and Nikolay Davydenko. Andy Roddick is in for sure if he reaches the Paris semifinals, but he will qualify regardless unless almost everything goes wrong for him elsewhere in the draw. Juan Martin Del Potro is in good shape 13 points ahead of Simon. Barring miracle runs by several of the distant contenders, the in-form Argentine will be a Masters Cup participant.
Simon’s victory over Andreev did not eliminate anyone who had not already been previously eliminated, but several would-be contenders eliminated themselves on Wednesday. David Ferrer and Stanislas Wawrinka saw their hopes-which were extremely legitimate going into Paris-vanish with opening losses to Philipp Kohlschreiber and Tomas Berdych, respectively. Robin Soderling, who needed to win the Paris title after hoisting the Lyon trophy, fell to Roger Federer in two tough sets.
Other players who need to win the title to have any chance are Gael Monfils, Fernando Verdasco, and David Nalbandian (who has said he would no play in Shanghai anyway due to Davis Cup preparation). All three, however, are facing especially tough odds having to go up against brutal opposition in round three. Monfils meets Nadal, Verdasco gets Murray, and Nalbandian takes on Del Potro.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga can still mathematically clinch a spot by reaching the title match, but he most likely needs to win it all and get help from Simon, Del Potro, and James Blake. Blake, who survived Simone Bolelli in a three-setter on Wednesday, needs to reach the semifinals at the very least.
