Juan Martin del Potro continued his march towards a Nitto ATP Finals spot on Thursday when he defeated Robin Haase of the Netherlands 7-5, 6-4 for a place in the Rolex Paris Masters quarter-finals for the third time (also 2009, 2013).

The popular Argentine, who was at No. 47 in the Emirates ATP Race To London prior to the start of the US Open, is now up to No. 10 on 2,595 points — only 20 points behind Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta (2,615), who sits in the last automatic qualification berth.

Del Potro, the No. 13 seed this week, has gone 20-4 since 28 August and will now look to move past Carreno Busta with a victory on Friday over sixth-seeded Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov or ninth seed John Isner of the United States.

In recent weeks, Del Potro has captured his 20th tour-level title at the Intrum Stockholm Open (d. Dimitrov) and finished runner-up at the Swiss Indoors Basel (l. to Federer). He has a 38-15 mark on the season.

The 29-year-old Del Potro has qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals on four previous occasions (2008-09, ’12-13), highlighted by a run to the 2009 title match (l. to Davydenko). The season finale begins at The O2 in London on 12 November.

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Juan Martin del Potro is still in the hunt for a place in the Nitto ATP Finals. The Argentine kept his chances of playing in the year-end tournament alive by defeating Joao Sousa 6-2, 6-2 in his opening match at the Rolex Paris Masters on Wednesday. Still, it’s his health that remains his top priority.

“I’m tired, but I’m still on track to achieve my goal for the year,” del Potro said after reaching the last 16 of the final ATP World Tour Masters 1000 of the season, where he’ll face Robin Haase on Thursday. “Five weeks ago, I was [No. 47] in the Emirates ATP Race to London. Today, I’m in a different situation, but my ultimate goal remains the same: to finish the year healthy.”

Del Potro is proud of his recent form and values the fact he’s been able to stay active. Since his semi-final run at the US Open, del Potro has played in Beijing, Shanghai, Stockholm, Basel and now Paris, where he’s competing for one of the two finals spots in London. His busy schedule is in stark contrast to past years, when injuries plagued him and he cut his seasons short.

“It’s the first time in several years that I’ve been healthy enough to play this many tournaments in a row,” del Potro said. “Last year, I didn’t even play here. I think I’ve played more matches than anyone since the US Open this year.”

Del Potro has taken steps to maintain his conditioning and to guarantee his longevity. The 29-year-old, who has undergone four wrist surgeries, is aware he needs to be in peak physical condition to keep pace with the top players on the ATP World Tour.

“I’ve been working on my stamina and in other areas to stay in shape and to keep evolving,” del Potro said. “I feel like I’m improving every week since my return. I happen to compete in a very competitive era. It’s a privilege to have the likes of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray as rivals, but in another era, I might have had more Grand Slam wins on my record.”

With momentum now on his side and health issues finally behind him, del Potro relishes the chance to play in the Nitto ATP Finals if he can clinch his spot this week.

“I would love to be in London,” del Potro said. “I’m making a very strong effort to be there; I’m putting myself through a lot, but I’m enjoying every minute of it. After that, I can think about vacation, but if I can finish this year in good health, I’ll be very excited for 2018.”

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It was a disappointing Wednesday for a couple of Nitto ATP Finals contenders. But David Goffin, who is the next player in line to qualify for the year-end finale, continued his push for a first London appearance after playing last season as an alternate.

The Belgian managed to battle past an in-form Frenchman playing in front of his home crowd, eliminating Adrian Mannarino, 6-2, 2-6, 6-3, in the second round of the Rolex Paris Masters.

The victory put Goffin within one match of guaranteeing his spot at The O2 from 12-19 November, as he has to reach the quarter-finals to clinch his year-end finale berth. Next in his path to London will be a home favourite, Julien Benneteau. Goffin won their only past tour-level meeting at this year’s US Open in four sets.

The 26-year-old was always the frontrunner to take one of two spots remaining in this year’s Nitto ATP Finals. But he has benefitted from losses by his nearest competitors. The three players directly below him at the start of the week are all out of the Paris draw: No. 9 Pablo Carreno Busta, No. 11 Sam Querrey and No. 12 Kevin Anderson.

Grigor Dimitrov, who already qualified for his first Nitto ATP Finals, continued his career-best season with an emphatic 6-4, 6-4 triumph against the in-form home favourite, Richard Gasquet.

The Bulgarian will achieve a new-career high Emirates ATP Ranking next week of, at the very least, No. 7. If he manages to win his second ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title of the season (Cincinnati), Dimitrov will rise to No. 3 in the world, five spots better than his previous career-high of No. 8, where he is in the standings this week. Dimitrov faces a stiff test next in ninth seed John Isner, as the pair has split their two FedEx ATP Head2Head meetings, with three of four sets going to tie-breaks.

Marin Cilic, like Dimitrov, gained more momentum as the Nitto ATP Finals approach, eliminating compatriot Borna Coric, 6-4, 6-3.

Cilic will next face a familiar foe in Roberto Bautista Agut, who ousted French qualifier Jeremy Chardy in the final match of the day, 6-4, 6-1. The Croatian owns a 3-1 lead in the pair’s FedEx ATP Head2Head series, which includes a lopsided victory at Wimbledon this year, where Cilic dropped just six games over the match’s three sets. If Bautista Agut will have any chance of qualifying for his first Nitto ATP Finals, he will have to win the title in Paris.

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