ATP World Finals: Marin Cilic secures place in O2 tournament

US Open champion Marin Cilic has become the fifth player to qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London next month.

The Croatian defeated Kei Nishikori in New York to become one of the most unexpected grand slam champions of recent years.

Live ATP Tennis

That victory made him a near certainty for one of the eight spots at the O2 Arena, with one place reserved for a major winner even if they finish outside the leading eight players of the season.

The only scenario that could have seen Cilic miss out would have been if he dropped outside the top eight and Australian Open champion Stan Wawrinka ended up in eighth.

That now cannot happen, meaning Cilic joins Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Wawrinka in having sealed his place.

Childhood dream

"This was one of my childhood dreams," said the 26-year-old Croatian.

"It happened this year and I'm extremely happy about this success. It's another achievement in my career.

"The Barclays ATP World Tour Finals is for sure one of the most interesting tournaments of the year. It is watched all over the world and brings a big attendance to all the matches. It will be a big honour for me to participate there."

Cilic has confirmed his withdrawal from the Valencia Open next week after qualifying for the O2 tournament, and New York victim Nishikori will also not be taking part.

The Japanese star is highly likely to take the sixth spot on offer in London after rising to No 5 in the world with three weeks remaining in the regular season.

That will leave Tomas Berdych, Milos Raonic, Andy Murray, David Ferrer and Grigor Dimitrov in contention for two more spots, with Murray reaching the final in Vienna this week to boost his hopes of qualifying.

Murray plays in Valencia next week and will open with a tough first-round clash against Jurgen Melzer of Austria. 

Ferrer takes on Andreas Seppi of Italy and on the other side of the draw Berdych takes on Spain's Pablo Andujar.

Watch coverage of the opening day of the Valencia Open on Sky Sports 3 HD on Monday from 11:00am.