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Barclays ATP World Tour Finals - Preview

By RohitSharma (TennisEarth.com), Submitted On

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The year-ending championship brings with it a series of stakes with the most elusive of them being the ATP World Tour champion title which is, so far, a battle between 15 time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer and the man who beat him on 13 out of 20 occasions, Rafael Nadal. Apart from the top spot in the rankings, the event will also act as a battleground for players like Novak Djokovic and Juan Martin Del Potro to prove that their success on tour was not a flash in the pan.

The 2009 season has been quite eventful for more than just a handful of reasons. It is the year that has seen, arguably the best tennis player of all times, break into tears at the year's first Grand Slam final, it is also the year that has witnessed the 'Clay-Maestro' topple in his own backyard at Roland Garros, and it is the year that has rejoiced in the emergence of some of the brightest stars in future tennis at a stage no less than the Flushing Meadows. However, as the season draws to a close, only a fortunate few, or should we say, a consistent few make it to the elite eight and gains a qualification to vie for the top honours at the season-ending championships. This year, the stage is new and improved and has seen a shift from Shanghai to London at the O2 Arena. The astonishing venue has enjoyed some of the most talented and high profile performers like Sir Elton John, Madonna and Whitney Houston along with the awe-inspiring Millennium Experience at the onset of 2000, but with eight of the tour's best players as the new set of performers showcasing their talents during the 'Thanksgiving Week', this may just be a place to find the most swashbuckling action in the sporting world.

The year-ending championship brings with it a series of stakes with the most elusive of them being the ATP World Tour champion title which is, so far, a battle between 15 time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer and the man who beat him on 13 out of 20 occasions, Rafael Nadal. Apart from the top spot in the rankings, the event will also act as a battleground for players like Novak Djokovic and Juan Martin Del Potro to prove that their success on tour was not a flash in the pan.

Name - Roger Federer
Seed - 1
2009 Titles - 4 ( Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open, French Open, Wimbledon, ATP World Tour Masters 1000 - Cincinnati )

For Roger Federer, the 2009 season started with a disappointment, turned into a picture perfect year with back-to-back grand slams and as it draws to a close now, things are back to where they started. Federer has had quite a struggle post Wimbledon as he suffered some un-settling losses to players like Novak Djokovic, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga,Juan Martin Del Potro and Julien Benneteau. The biggest challenge for Federer is not the motivation as it is clear from the Swiss' mid season performance. It is his inability to match the ferocity and the hunger of players like Djokovic, Murray who are thriving for excellence. The Swiss maestro shares the Group A with Murray, Del Potro and Verdasco. Federer has a good chance to register wins over Verdasco and Del Potro for completely different reasons. Del Potro has struggled with injuries post his US Open triumph and Verdasco's in-experience  on big stages is the Spaniard's biggest drawback. The only player, who can give Federer some stiff challenge is the Scot and home favourite Andy Murray, who leads the head-to-head record by 6 wins and 3 losses against the Swiss. Although, his recent loss to Federer in Cincinnati was an aberration of sorts. The truth is that Federer's road to semifinals is comparatively easier than the rest in the field. However, it only gets tough with the last four stage.

Name - Rafael Nadal
Seed - 2
2009 Titles - 5 ( Australian Open, ATP World Tour Masters 1000 - Indian Wells, ATP World Tour Masters 1000 - Monte Carlo, ATP World Tour Masters 1000 - Rome, Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell ) 

Rafael Nadal enjoyed one of the most successful seasons of his career when he won the Australian Open and added three out of the next four masters series shields to his collection. However, one loss at the French Open changed everything. A nagging injury kept the Spaniard out of Wimbledon and a straight sets demolition at the hands of eventual champion Del Potro in US Open shook the Mallorcan's self-belief to the core. Nadal's efforts to re-establish himself as the dominant force in the circuit were halted from time-to-time by players like Nikolay Davydenko and Novak Djokovic, who registered straight sets wins over the six time Grand Slam champion on the surface that, to an extent, limits the Spaniard's game plan and strength. Many consider that injury which plagued him two months the primary reason for Nadal's below expectation performance. However, the truth is that on the fast paced indoors, Nadal's game suffers a serious hit, especially by the flat hitters of the game like Djokovic and Del Potro. Nadal's toughest challenge will come from the Russian Nikolay Davydenko and Serbian Djokovic, who is enjoying the best form of his career. So, on one hand, as Federer is quite likely to secure the semifinal spot, Nadal will have a tough time making it to the last four with some in-form players in the same Group.

Name - Novak Djokovic
Seed - 3
2009 Titles - 5 ( Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships, Serbia Open, China Open, Davidoff Swiss Indoors Basel, ATP World Tour Masters 1000 - Paris )

Defending champion  Novak Djokovic struggled throughout the 2009 season with early exits in Grand Slams and a series of Masters series finals losses that included runner-up finishes in Monte Carlo, Rome, Cincinnati and Miami. He finally picked up the biggest title of the year in Paris when he beat players like Nadal and Soderling to re-capture his supremacy. The most impressive victory came in Basel, where he beat home town favourite Roger Federer to lift the trophy. With such confidence-boosting victories, Djokovic is definitely one of the strongest contendors for the title in London. Again, his challenge may come from Soderling and Davydenko, who are both capable of hunting him down with their similar style of play. Despite these factors, Djokovic is quite likely to find a place in the finals at the O2 Arena.

Name - Andy Murray
Seed - 4
2009 Titles - 6 ( Qatar Open, ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament, ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami, AEGON Championships, ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Canada, Open Tenis Valencia )

With 6 titles under his belt, Scot Andy Murray
 is the tour leader and a strong contendor for the title. The home-favourite is pitted against the likes of Federer and Del Potro in the Group A, where his biggest challenge will be to get past the Swiss superstar. Del Potro's injury stricken season post US Open triumph has raised questions over his fitness and mobility on court and this will be a factor in determining the semifinalists at the year-ending championships. Spaniard Fernando Verdasco, the other player in the same group, has been able to win only one match in seven career meetings with the Scot. His unflattering surrender in-front of an ailing Murray in Valencia raised serious concerns over the Spaniard's ability to capitalise on favourable situations and this simply increases Murray's chances of making it to the last four.

Name - Juan Martin Del Potro
Seed - 5
2009 Titles - 3 ( Heineken Open , Legg Mason Tennis Classic, U.S. Open )

What's most disappointing about Juan Martin Del Potro's performance is that the Argentine completely failed to follow up on his awe-inspiring triumph at the U.S. Open, where he set the arrival of the challenger brigade in tennis in front of established stars like Federer and Nadal. Del Potro's struggle with injuries during the Asian Swing resulted in early round exits and that is perhaps the primary reason for him being pretty unlikely to make it to the last four in London. The tall Argentine has one of the best forehands on tour and on the fast paced indoor durface, he may very well be able to pull some unexpected results. So keeping the attributes and past results in mind, Del Potro's chances at the year-ending championship are dependent on his recovery during the 10 days down time before the start of the championships. If the Argentine is fit, he can prove fatal to anybody in the draw.

Name - Nikolay Davydenko
Seed - 6
2009 Titles - 4 ( International German Open, ATP Studena Croatia Open, Malaysian Open, ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Shanghai )

Last year's Runner-up Nikolay Davydenko has carved a niche for himself in the tennis fraternity and is considered by many as the most dangerous among the active crop of players. After an injury hampered season start, the Russian made solid attempts to comeback and after three Tier-III level triumph in Hamburg, Umag and Kuala Lumpur, finally returned to the elite in Shanghai. Davydenko's biggest challenge comes in the form of his inconsistent play that has seen the matches slip away from him in the most un-assuming fashion. Davydenko's finest performance this year came in the semifinals in Shanghai, when he beat an in-form Novak Djokovic in a final set tie-break. And that makes the 2008 year-end runner-up a possible semifinalist this year in London. His contendorship is stronger than Nadal, whose limited strengths on the fast paced courts give an edge to his opponents.

Name - Fernando Verdasco
Seed - 7
2009 Titles - 1 ( Pilot Pen Tennis Championships )

As much as we hate to mention, Fernando Verdasco's chances of making it to the semifinals are slimmest of the whole lot. His competition comes in the form of players like Federer, Murray and Del Potro, who, despite not being 100% fit, have managed a win over the Spaniard. Verdasco's finest performance came in the semifinals of the Australian Open, where he stretched Nadal to limits. But ever since, his inconsistent play has caused the tennis-pundits to doubt his capabilities. Verdasco's forehand is perhaps the finest shot among the elite eight, unfortunately weak match play and fragile temperament streamline his chances at the O2 Arena.

Name - Robin Soderling
Seed - 8
2009 Titles - 1 ( Catella Swedish Open )

Robin Soderling's entry to the season-ending draw presented to him with an opportunity of a lifetime. The Swede broke into the tennis scene with his path-breaking win over four time defending champion Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros. An impressive run at the green grass of Wimbledon, followed by a quarterfinal finish at Flushing Meadows made him a consistent performer at the Grand Slams and that perhaps did the trick for the Swedish No.1. Now as Andy Roddick's withdrawal got Soderling a place in the last eight at the Barclays ATP World Tour Championships, it also got him an extremely favourable draw. Soderling is pitted against Djokovic, Davydenko and Nadal for a place in the semifinals. The Swede leads the head-to-head with Davydenko by six wins to three and has knocked out Nadal already this year. Soderling's flashes of dominance against Djokovic at the Quarterfinals of the Paris Masters also give him a point to make. However, despite his improved play, he will continue to be the 'Destiny's child' for as far as he goes into the grand finale.