Davydenko & Simon Chase Berths

© Getty ImagesNikolay Davydenko is through to the semi-finals of an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament for the first time this season.

With the qualification process for the prestigious Barclays ATP World Tour Finals coming to an end, the recent title triumphs of Gilles Simon and Nikolay Davydenko and strong showings from Fernando Verdasco, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Fernando Gonzalez and Robin Soderling in Asia have paved the way for a potentially thrilling climax.

That cluster of players - along with Andy Roddick - are all vying to join Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic and Juan Martin del Potro in the spectacular end-of-season showpiece finale at The O2 in London from 22-29 November.

Davydenko bolstered his chances of securing one of the three remaining places with victory in the inaugural Malaysian Open. It puts the Russian - who was defeated by Djokovic in the final of the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in 2008 in Shanghai – in the eighth and final qualification place for this year's eagerly-anticipated season-ending tournament.

Perhaps of greater significance, though, is the fact Davydenko's third ATP Tour title of the season came courtesy of a 6-4, 7-5 win in the final over Verdasco, leaving the Spaniard ninth in the rankings.

Not that Davydenko is assured of his place just yet for the world's biggest indoor tournament at The O2 in London, which will consist of the top eight singles players and the top eight doubles teams on the ATP World Tour.

Soderling and Gonzalez, who are currently ranked 11th and 12th respectively, also reached the semi-final stages in Kuala Lumpur as the big guns of the tennis world begin to flex their muscles.

Simon also appears to have hit form at precisely the right time by ending a title drought that spanned just over 12 months.

The 24-year-old Frenchman beat Viktor Troicki 7-5, 6-3 in the Thailand Open final, while Tsonga impressed on his way to the last four. Success in Bangkok was Simon's first since he triumphed at the BCR Open Romania in September 2008.

The world No.10 may still only harbour slim hopes of taking pride of place at the illustrious Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, but he nevertheless is delighted with his recent performances.

"This was the victory I needed to finish off the year," he said. "It's late in the year, but it's still good to get my first title of 2009. "It feels really good because it's never easy to win a tournament, even when you're one of the top seeds at the tournament."

The focus now shifts to the Shanghai ATP Masters 1000 from 11-18 October, when the likes of Davydenko will be brimming with confidence.

Along with Roddick and Tsonga - sixth and seventh respectively - Davydenko will also be hoping to take advantage of Federer's absence in China to edge closer to challenging for glory in London in late November.

Like Federer, Murray will also be missing as he continues to be sidelined by a wrist problem, although he has targeted a possible return at the Valencia Open, which gets under way on November 2.

Nadal - who is searching for his second ATP World Tour title on Asian soil - will be top seed in Shanghai.