Tennis Masters Cup Race to the Semi-finals

Shanghai, China – The gatecrashing duo of World No.3 Novak Djokovic and No.4 Andy Murray have marched into the Shanghai semis on the heels of back-to-back victories in the round robin stage of the Tennis Masters Cup.

Second seed Djokovic, who heads up the Gold Group, kicked off a successful campaign in his second visit to the Masters event, beating Juan Martin Del Potro in his opening match and Nikolay Davydenko in the next. Meanwhile, the fiery Scot Andy Murray (seeded third), recorded victories over Andy Roddick and Gilles Simon to storm in to the semis in his debut outing at the prestigious event.

After not winning a single match or a set last year at the Tennis Masters Cup event and suffering late 2008 season doldrums, prior to journeying to Shanghai, sports bettors had serious misgivings about Djokovic’s chances to challenge for the prestigious cup. By contrast, after a late season renaissance from the Scot that saw him finally deliver on the potential he so long time promised, Murray entered the event as one of the clear favourites in the sports betting market.

Djokovic was the first of the eight contenders to establish firmly a berth in the final four, his Masters Cup bid off to a promising start, he now awaits the results of tomorrows Red Group action to find out whether he will meet Roger Federer or possibly Gilles Simon in the semis.

Murray secured his place on Wednesday when he beat Gilles Simon in straight sets. He has to wait for the outcome of the final Gold Group fixtures set for tomorrow. Closest to advancing is Argentinean sensation Juan Martin Del Potro but veteran Nikolay Davydenko cannot be counted out as he is still in the race – albeit slightly further – for a spot in the semis.

The semi-final landscape sets up a blockbuster final day of tennis betting action in the round robin stage of the Tennis Masters Cup. The red group is replete with nerve-wracking would-be scenarios. Roger Federer and Gilles Simon are still alive for the second spot in the semis after Andy Murray clinched the top spot and Andy Roddick withdrew from the event with an ankle injury.

Federer and Simon are 1-1, thereby, three outcomes are possible, each producing different results. The most straightforward is if Federer beats Murray and Simon loses to Stepanek, Federer is in. Vice versa, if Federer loses to Murray and Simon beats Stepanek, Simon is in. The last scenario where both Federer and Simon are upended is a bit more complicated but it would come down to head-to-heads. If they both lost tomorrow, they would be level in match win-loss records at 1-2. Simon beat Federer in the opening round robin match so his 1-0 head-to-head mark would effectively give him the semi-final nod.

The Gold Group semi-final scenario is equally tight with Juan Martin Del Potro and Nikolay Davydenko level 1-1 in match win-loss records. However, fittingly, they will battle against each other to determine who marches ahead in Shanghai. A match does not get any bigger at this stage; when it is so critical – the second semi berth on the line.