Events / Simon Mundie / 29 September 2008 /

Andy Murray will be determined to prove that he is a genuine addition to the men's elite during the final chapter of the season, says Simon Mundie.

So after what has been a fascinating year on the ATP tour to date, the final chapter is now upon us; the indoor season.

Ahead of the top players lie two more Masters events in Madrid and Paris, as well as several more low key tournaments in which to try and garner enough points to qualify for the year ending Masters Cup in Shanghai. The four stand-out players of the year, including of course Scotland's Andy Murray, have already booked their seats on the plane to China, and there are several players who will be battling it out for the remaining four places on offer.

Over the years, there have always been players who thrived during this stretch of the season. Historically, it has suited fast court players with powerful and attacking games who played with little margin for error. The courts do vary in speed between now and Shanghai, but generally speaking the courts are the fastest in the tennis calendar. The lack of outside variables, such as wind and sun, also aids those who like to press and dictate the play.

Of course the big four will be expected to dominate proceedings, and rightly so. Roger Federer proved he was far from a spent force when he won his 13th Grand Slam title at the US Open, and his game is tailor made for a fast indoor court, hence why he has won the Masters Cup in four of the last five years. Rafael Nadal showed this season that his game on the quicker surfaces is much improved by winning at Wimbledon as well as big titles on hard courts, but he is certainly more vulnerable indoors. Novak Djokovic will be there or thereabouts, although his form has dipped a fraction since Wimbledon, and Andy Murray will be looking to prove that he is a genuine addition to that exclusive club at the top of the men's game.

So who else can we expect to make their mark and contend for the remaining big trophies up for grabs? Last year, David Nalbandian [3.0] counfounded the critics after a miserable year to win both the Madrid and Paris Masters titles, beating Federer and Nadal twice each along the way, with an awesome display of powerful hitting. The Argentine clearly likes playing indoors; indeed he is the one player who has stopped Federer from winning the Masters Cup in recent years, triumphing over the Swiss in 2005. He has again disappointed this season, currently lying 22nd in the race, and you would have to think it unlikely that he will produce such impressive results for a second consecutive year.

Andy Roddick[1.01] will be full of confidence having won the 26th title of his career in Beijing, and I would expect him to secure a place in Shanghai. The Nebraskan is in seventh spot at present, and is in better form than both players currently ahead of him in the race; Nikolay Davydenko[1.01] and David Ferrer[1.09].

Both the Russian and the Spaniard have struggled of late. Davydenko was thrashed by up and coming Juan Martin Del Potro in the Davis Cup and Ferrer only beat Roddick 8-6 in the fifth on clay. If the Spaniard and the American met indoors, Roddick would start a heavy favourite. However, I still expect Ferrer and Davydenko to do enough to secure their spots in China.

The Argentine Juan Martin Del Potro has been a revelation of late, and I would not be in the least surprised if he won his first Masters title in Madrid or Paris, and qualified for his first Masters Cup. He has a huge game, which will only be helped by the quicker conditions indoors, and it won't be long before he starts challenging the players at the very top.

James Blake [1.1] needs to produce his best form if he's to hold on to eighth spot. He had a confidence boosting win over Federer at the Olympics, but a disappointing loss to Mardy Fish at the US Open. His go for broke style has paid dividends indoors in the past, reaching the final of the Masters Cup in 2006, but he'll need to improve his consistency this time around.

Alongside Del Potro, the most impressive newcomer for me this year has been France's Gilles Simon. He's climbed to twelth in the race, yet it will be a challenge for him to excel indoors. His game is built around speed and tenacity, and certain players will be able to simply blow him away on a fast indoor court. A place in Shanghai is probably twelve months too early for him.

The final two players who have a genuine chance of finishing the year in the top eight are Olympic runner up Fernando Gonzelez [4.0] and Stanislas Wawrinka [1.1], although I suspect both will fall just short this time round. So my predictions for the players who will join the Big Four in Shanghai are as follows; Davydenko, Ferrer, Roddick and Del Potro, with James Blake taking his place as first reserve. But as in 2007, it would be no surprise if someone emulated Nalbandian's amazing feat and stole the headlines.

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