PARIS (AP) — Andy Roddick beat Ernests Gulbis of Latvia 6-3, 7-6 (8) on Thursday to reach the quarterfinals a the Paris Masters.
Roddick’s win boosted his chances of qualifying for the ATP World Tour Finals later this month in London, and put Jurgen Melzer out of contention in the race for the elite year-end tournament.
Melzer, who’ll play David Ferrer later Thursday, needed to win in Paris and have Roddick lose in the third round to have a chance to qualify.
Only the top eight players will play in the ATP Finals from Nov. 21-28, with No. 1 Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Robin Soderling having already secured their spots.
Roddick is eighth in the rankings and will be guaranteed a spot unless Fernando Verdasco reaches the final in Paris.
