Outsider Andy Murray has to scramble to return to ATP World Tour Finals

Murray now finds himself ranked 12th in the world and over 700 points off eighth-ranked Kei Nishikori, leaving him with a steep uphill - but not impossible - climb to qualify for the end-of-year showcase.

Andy Murray is currently the 12th-ranked player in the world, behind France's Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov. Sang Tan / AP

This year’s race to qualify for the ATP World Tour Finals in November is shaping up to be the most exciting yet.

There are seven weeks of tournaments left for the contenders to book their place at the O2 Arena for the eight-man, end-of-season showpiece.

So far only Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer are assured of their spots, although Australian Open champion Stan Wawrinka looks safe as well.

After winning the US Open, Marin Cilic has also virtually secured his place courtesy of the rule that states a grand slam champion will qualify even if he drops outside the top eight provided he stays in the top 20.

That leaves three spots up for grabs, for which Andy Murray will need to scramble.

With two Masters tournaments left, in Shanghai and Paris, and 1,000 points available for the winner of each, though, it is still all to play for.

Of those in contention, Nishikori, Milos Raonic and Grigor Dimitrov would be new faces at the O2 while David Ferrer, Tomas Berdych and Murray have been virtual ever presents since the tournament moved to London in 2009.

Murray is the outsider at the moment, with the 2013 Wimbledon winner now 12th in the world, over 700 points off eight-ranked Kei Nishikori.

The concern for Murray is the only tournament this season at which he has picked up big points was the French Open, where he reached the semi-finals.

In order to overhaul those above him, he probably needs to win a smaller tournament or reach the final at a Masters event – a big ask considering he has not made the final at any tournament for more than a year.

The good news for the Scot is there were signs at the US Open that he is very close to his best form again.

After losing to Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals, Murray described qualifying for the tour finals as “not a massive goal”, which, given the scarce opportunities to play on home soil, seemed odd.

The suspicion was it may have been his disappointment talking and events since have backed that up.

Murray will play three tournaments in a row in China having taken a wild card not just into the China Open but also next week’s Shenzhen Open.

The 27-year-old will be the top seed in Shenzhen and will hope to brush off any rust before the tougher challenges in Beijing and Shanghai.

It was a slight surprise to see Murray opt for Beijing rather than the tournament in Tokyo, which carries the same points but has a slightly weaker field.

However, there must be question marks over whether Djokovic, who is awaiting the birth of his first child, and Nadal will actually play in Beijing.

Nadal has not played a match since Wimbledon because of his wrist injury so may not be at his strongest even if he does make the trip.

All the top players – barring perhaps Roger Federer – will be in Shanghai but it has been a profitable venue for Murray, who has never failed to make the final on three previous visits, winning the title twice.

After China, the tour hits the European indoor courts, and, should Murray still be on the cusp, he may take a wild card into Valencia or Basel prior to the Paris Masters.

When the draw for the 2015 Davis Cup is made in Dubai on Thursday, Great Britain – with one player in the top 100 – will be in the World Group while Spain – who have 12 – must slum it in Europe/Africa Zone Group I.

Champions in three of the past six years, Spain were relegated after losing their play-off to Brazil at the weekend, suffering their first defeat on clay since 1999.

That Spain were without seven of their leading eight singles players demonstrates once again that the competition is not a priority for many of the top players, although the result was still an upset.

It is most definitely a priority for Switzerland’s top duo, with Federer and Wawrinka now one victory away from leading their country to a first ever Davis Cup title.

Victory over Italy booked a final date with France in November, where Federer will attempt to land one of only two major prizes in tennis still to elude him.

Success would leave Olympic singles gold as the elusive final piece of the jigsaw, and he should have one last crack at that in Rio in two years’ time.

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