With the Australian Open rapidly approaching, let’s take a look at battles for some of the key ranking spots that resulted in favorable seeds and perhaps friendly draws in Melbourne.

Battle for a Top 16 seed (current ranking in parentheses)

(14) John Isner, 2150 points – did not play in either Brisbane, Chennai, or Doha. CLINCHED Top 16 seed.

(15) Mikhail Youzhny, 2145 points – retired against Dudi Sela in the Chennai second round. CLINCHED Top 16 seed.

(16) Fabio Fognini, 1930 points – retired against Yuki Bhambri in the Chennai second round. CLINCHED Top 16 seed.

(17) Kei Nishikori, 1915 points – lost to Lleyton Hewitt in the Brisbane semifinals. ELIMINATED from Top 16 seed contention.

(18) Tommy Robredo, 1810 points – did not play in either Brisbane, Chennai, or Doha. ELIMINATED from Top 16 seed contention.

(19) Gilles Simon, 1790 points – lost to Marius Copil in the…