Tim Henman yesterday qualified for the season-ending Masters Cup in Houston without hitting a ball.
Henman needed to reach the quarter-finals in the defence of his Paris Masters title to be certain of taking his place in the elite eight-man field.
But the withdrawal of rivals Andre Agassi and David Nalbandian from Paris means the British No 1 is now certain to qualify for the lucrative event which gets under way on November 15.
Agassi informed the tournament organisers he was suffering from the recurrence of a hip injury following his defeat to Thomas Johansson in the final of the Stockholm Open.
The duo are replaced in the draw by `lucky losers' Victor Hanescu and Davide Sanguinetti.
Henman joins Roger Federer, Andy Roddick, Lleyton Hewitt, Carlos Moya, Gaston Gaudio, Guillermo Coria and Marat Safin in the eight-man draw.
But with injury concerns hanging over Federer and Coria, Agassi may still feature in Houston, which would suit the Texas tennis fans, as he is first reserve.
