Andy Roddick Out of London, Soderling in

London, England – The announcement that Andy Roddick has withdrawn from the Barclay’s ATP World Tour Finals comes as no surprise. It was in fact anticipated. Roddick confirmed he would not be competing in the prestigious season-ending tournament Tuesday, pulling out with a knee injury.

The American No.1 Roddick has been struggling physically since exiting early at the US Open, and perhaps a little mentally too. Roddick competed in only two events during the Asian swing, to no success. He was ousted in the first round of Beijing by No.143 Lukas Kubot and withdrew from his Shanghai opener down 4-3 in the first set to Wawrinka.

First alternate Robin Soderling gains entry into the tournament as a result of Roddick’s withdrawal. The Swede only narrowly missed out qualifying for the event of his own accord, when he lost to Novak Djokovic in the Paris Masters quarters.

Roddick’s loss is Soderling’s gain indeed.  And a certain Spaniard’s misfortune.

Soderling enjoyed a breakthrough when he beat four-time defending French Open champion Nadal in the Roland Garros R16 and carried the momentum to a runner-up finish (l. to Federer). He has not looked back since, charting a standout season (by his standards) and now he will have the privilege of closing out his season in the company of the game’s elite.

Soderling joins the eight-man line up in London with a 47-19 mark on the season and one title in Bastad. To the runner-up finish at Roland Garros, Soderling added a Wimbledon R16 and US Open quarterfinal finish. Other highlights include: semifinals in Kuala Lumpur, Beijing, and Stockholm, and quarterfinals in Shanghai and Paris.

The World Tour Finals Groups will be announced on Wednesday. With Soderling in the field, world No. 10 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga becomes the top alternate.