Agassi, Kuerten main attraction

A tense battle for Champions Race points should provide the drama and help offset the withdrawal of World Number One Lleyton Hewitt when the...

A tense battle for Champions Race points should provide the drama and help offset the withdrawal of World Number One Lleyton Hewitt when the inaugural Madrid Masters begins in a converted rock concert hall on Monday.

The indoor tournament, which is being held in the Spanish capital for the first time after shifting from Stuttgart, was dealt a blow on Friday when Hewitt, the Wimbledon champion, was forced to pull out because of a viral infection.

US Open champion Pete Sampras is also missing but, with Andre Agassi leading the international brigade and three-times French Open champion Gustavo Kuerten accepting a wild card, the field is still strong.

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The closest finish in the three-year history of the Champions Race should also ensure there is plenty of excitement generated.

With three weeks to go in the regular ATP season, only Hewitt and Agassi are assured of places in the lucrative Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai.

Top Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero, ranked fourth and a Masters Series winner in Monte Carlo, is among the players still with work to do to make certain of one of the six remaining places and he is expecting a tough battle.

“There are a lot of players high up there in the rankings and they’re all going to be challenging,” Ferrero said as he prepared for the tournament. “There’s also bound to be the usual surprise or two.

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“It would be a great prize to be there for the Shanghai Masters after fighting it out all season. For me, it would mean I was among the best players in the world for the second successive season.” (Reuters)

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