Taylor Fritz seals ATP Finals 2024 qualification after Andrey Rublev's shock Paris Masters exit

The second day of the 2024 Paris Masters main-draw action brought good news for Taylor Fritz as the American was assured of a berth in the ATP Finals following Andrey Rublev's shock exit from the tournament. Rublev suffered an unforeseen loss to Argentine Francisco Cerundolo in the second round.

Having received a bye in the first round, seed No. 6 Rublev battled hard against Cerundolo, who overcame local Quentin Haleys in his opener, on Tuesday, October 29. However, he lost the match in straight sets after a close fight.

It was breakpoints gallore as Rublev and Cerundolo threatened each other's serves a combined 29 times, converting on four occasions each. Both sets were decided in tiebreakers and the scoreline in the end read 7-6(6), 7-6(5) in the Argentine's favor.

The outcome meant Taylor Fritz, currently fifth in the Race to Turin (ATP Finals) with 4,300 points in his tally, qualified for the Year-end Championships. Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev, and Daniil Medvedev have already secured a place in the eight-man field.

It will be the World No. 6's second appearance in the prestigious tournament. He debuted there in 2022 and made a run to the semifinals, losing 7-6(5), 7-6(6) to eventual champion Novak Djokovic.

All is not yet over Andrey Rublev, who sits eighth in the race, having accumulated 3,720 points. With three spots still up for grabs, the Russian is in a tussle with Novak Djokovic (3,910 points), Casper Ruud (3,855 points), Alex de Minaur (3,555 points), and Grigor Dimtrov (3,150).

Except Rublev and Djokovic, all players are in contention for the Paris Masters title and 1,000 ranking points as a consequence. Following the ongoing Masters 1000 event, the upcoming Belgrade Open and Moselle Open can also help players earn points for a place in the 2024 ATP Finals, scheduled to run from November 10-17 in Turin, Italy.

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Taylor Fritz will face either Jack Draper or Jiri Lehecka in his Paris Masters opener

In Picture: Taylor Fritz (Getty)

Taylor Fritz will get going in the 2024 Paris Masters as the fifth seed against the winner of the first-round match between Britain's Jack Draper and Czech Jiri Lehecka. Draper and Lehecka will square off on Tuesday, October 29, at the Accor Arena.

Notably, Fritz has a positive Tour-level head-to-head record against both Draper and Lehecka, leading the Brit 2-1 and the latter 3-0. Draper and Lehecka, however, have been in great form in the recent weeks.

The Brit triumphed at the Vienna Open a couple of days ago to reach a career-high ranking of World No. 15, defeating Karen Khachnov 6-4, 7-5 in the final. Lehecka, on the other hand, endured a run to the title clash of the European Open, losing to Roberto Bautista Agut (7-5, 6-1).