Tournament Previews:

After three weeks of tennis in Asia, the ATP World Tour treks back to the European indoor season to finish off another global year on the circuit.

This weeks events on tour will be showcased in Moscow, Russia and Stockholm, Sweden. Both tournaments will contest 32-man fields, with the winner of each event receiving 250 ATP World Tour points.

The winner in Moscow will receive $170,000, while the champion in Stockholm will take home 93,000 euros.

Fresh off his impressive showing in Shanghai, top seed Nikolay Davydenko will attempt to capture his fourth title on home soil. Davydenko, who is still in hot pursuit of a spot in Barclays ATP World Tour finals in London, will be joined by No. 2 seed Victor Hanescu, No. 3 seed Mikhail Youzhny, and No. 4 seed Igor Andreev.

Defending champ Igor Kunitsyn will also be participating.

Other notables in the draw will include No. 7 seed Fabrice Santoro, Marat Safin, and American Robby Ginepri. Safin will be retiring in three weeks time, and will be vying to win his first title of the year, as well as his first in Moscow.

The event in Stockholm boasts a slightly strong field. Indoor wizard Robin Soderling, who has never won his home title will attempt to join the illustrious list of past Swedish champions which includes Bjorn Borg, 1980; MatsWilander, 1983; Tomas Enqvist, 1995-96, 1999; and the most recent, former Australian Open champ Tomas Johansson, 2004.

Soderling did capture his first title in Sweden on clay this summer (Bastad), and will be joined by No. 2 seed Tommy Haas, No. 3 seed Juan Carlos Ferrero, and No. 4 seed Juan Monaco.

Other notables in the draw will include Marcos Baghdatis, wildcard recipient Joachim Johansson, and future prospect Girgor Dmitrov.

The event in Stockholm seldom receives poor player support, and credits its player party for its great attendance.

Let us now take a look at each draw, and the potential match ups for the seeded players.

Kremlin Cup—Moscow, Russia

Top half:

On the verge of qualifying for the tour finale in London, Davydenko will face none other than nearly retired Marat Safin in round one. Safin, who will be playing in his fourth consecutive week, trails his countryman 4-3 in head-to-head meetings. The pair have faced twice in Moscow, with Safin winning in 2008, and Davydenko prevailing in 2006.

Safin will have a great shot at capturing an upset here, pending on the fatigue factor that Davydenko may be carrying. Davydenko seldom displays any sort ill effects from playing in consecutive tournaments, but will likely be recovering from his triumph in Shanghai.

If there was ever a time for Safin to upset his Davis Cup teammate during his farewell tour, it would be in the first round.

It appears that the Russian Davis Cup team is in full force in this section. In the event that Davydenko squeaks past Safin, defending champ Igor Kunistyn, or hard hitting Evgeny Korolev will be waiting.

Kunitsyn has struggled mightily this year, reaching a lone quarterfinal in Memphis, Tenn. Kunitsyn's record of 12-27 coming in, will not bode well for his title defense.

Korolev by contrast, has had a much stronger year on tour, reaching the finals in Delray Beach, Florida, and the semifinals in Houston, Texas.

Davydenko could face the under-matched challenge of No. 8 seed Martin Vassello Arguello in the quarterfinals. The Argentine has yet to excel on faster surfaces, and will likely bow out before the quarterfinal round.

The semifinals could see Davydenko face either forth No. 4 seed Igor Andreev, or No. 6 seed Janko Tipsarevic. Andreev will take on equally mechanical Robby Ginepri in round one, while Tipsarevic will have to battle past the likes of Daniel Koellerer, and Marc Gicquel to set up a showdown with Davydenko.

Andreev is due for a big result, and will be fueled by his home-country support.

However, there is that matter of Safin being in this section. With the Russian star playing with house money, and only three weeks until he can see his loft in Monte Carlo, the big man may just be the welcome surprise of the event.

If Davydenko shows up looking for blood, Safin will lose, otherwise look for the former world No. 1 to advance to the finals of his first event of the season.

Pick: Safin

Bottom half:

Second seed Victor Hanescu has never enjoyed indoor success. The crafty 6'6" Romanian relishes the opportunity to play on clay-courts, and will to adapt his slow-court mentality towards the indoor surface in Moscow.

Hanescu was dealt the easier half of the draw, and will face workhorse American Wayne Odesnik in round one. Odesnik also prefers playing on clay-courts, posting a runner up finish to Lleyton Hewitt in Houston, Texas.

Round two could see Hanescu meet Italian Fabio Fognini, with No. 5 seed Pablo Cuevas waiting in the quarterfinals. Fognini and Cuevas could challenge Hansecu, but neither possesses a favorable indoor style to be called a clear-cut favorite.

Hanescu's fate could be sealed in the semifinals with the like of recent Japan finalist Mikhail Youzhny, and Fabrice Santoro present.

Youzhny played the tennis of his season to reach the finals of Tokyo, and with a full week of training in Moscow under his belt, another deep run is probable.

Santoro, who will join Safin in retiring at the end of the season, faces a relatively easy path to the finals. Two young Russian wildcards stand in Santoro's way of setting up a potential quarterfinal showdown with Youzhny, a head-to-head which the Frenchman trails 3-4.

All in all, a nostalgic Santoro-Safin final would be a sight to behold, with the likelihood of both charismatic pro's making the finals a long shot.

Youzhny may be the best bet to carry his recent good form into the finals, with Hanescu requiring a miracle to acquire indoor success.

Pick: Youzhny

If Stockholm Open—Stockholm, Sweden

Top half:

With defending champ David Nalbandian recovering from hip surgery, a new champion will be crowed in the 30th addition of the historic Swedish event. Top seed Robin Soderling, who is still in contention for qualifying in London will be seeking his second title of the season, and the fifth of his career.

Soderling will begin his Stockholm campaign against a qualifier, facing either Victor Crivoi, or Andreas Seppi in round two.

Crivoi and Seppi have built their careers on clay, and will be out of their element against the Swede.

The quarterfinals could see the booming serve of No. 6 seed Benjamin Becker challenge Soderling, though, the German has yet to excel on any surface other than grass, and hard-court.

The best first round match of this half will pit former world No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero against former top ten player Marcos Baghdatis. Ferrero suffered an embarrassing defeat to Radek Stepanek in Shanghai last week, while Baghdatis has been busy on the Challenger circuit in an attempt to recapture his elite form.

Either player could give Soderling a measurable challenge, but are both unlikely to stir an upset.

Perhaps the likely choice to face Soderling in the quarterfinals is German Andreas Beck. The tricky left-hander has a forgiving draw which consists of playing qualifiers in his first two rounds. The 23-year-old will be attempting to reach his sixth quarterfinal of season, in what would be his first meeting against the top Swede.

All in all, this half is Soderling's to win or lose. The confident Tibro native has hinted over the past few weeks that the Stockholm event (for obvious reasons), is a top priority for him to win.

The march to solidifying his place in London begins here.

Pick: Soderling

Bottom half:

After taking a much needed break from the tour, No. 2 seed Tommy Haas returned to action in Shanghai last week, only to retire in his first match against countryman Rainer Schuettler. Haas' aggravated shoulder injury has since healed, and the 31-year-old will be eager to post a solid result in Sweden.

Haas begins his Stockholm journey against Florent Serra, with the potential of meeting dangerous youngsters Girgor Dmitrov in round two.

Dmitrov has enjoyed moderate success on tour thus far, transitioning from the junior ranks to the pro circuit. The 18-year-old already owns an ATP win over Tomas Berdych (Rotterdam), while taking a set off Rafael Nadal in the subsequent round.

Dmitrov will have to dispatch of tour veteran Jarko Nieminen before a potential meeting with Haas could take place.

Serve and volley Spaniard Feliciano Lopez is slated to meet Haas in the quarterfinals. However, a recent foot injury sustained by Lopez in the semifinals of Shanghai has put his participation in doubt.

If Lopez remains in the draw, he is scheduled to meet Ernests Gulbis in round one. The Latvian recently made it to the quarterfinals at the Japan Open, winning back-to-back matches for the first time all season.

Gulbis could challenge Haas if the pair met in the quarterfinals, with that prediction being premature at best.

Other seeds in this section include No. 4 seed Juan Monaco, and No. 7 seed Albert Montanes. Monaco is the flasher of the two clay-court players, but has not shown any resolve on tour other than his native clay.

Montanes recently captured his second title of the season in Romania, but like Monaco has never gained the same success under a roof.

Lack of match play may be Haas' main culprit in Shanghai, with the draw well designed to see him progress to finals. However, the German's recent form is no where near as reputable as it was in the summer, leading one to believe that he is just not ready to win four or five matches in a row.

How about "Pim Pim" Joachim Johansson? The ace machine has been in the process of a mini career comeback, which will be supported unanimously by the crowd support, and decent draw. If Johansson catches fire, there is no reason why he can't give the Stockholm fans an all-Swedish final.

For lack of a better pick, let's stay on the unpredictable side and go with the one time US Open semifinalist.

Pick: Johansson

Please check back throughout the week for daily wrap ups from Moscow, Russia, and Stockholm, Sweden.

Cheers.