There wont be a battle in Paris for the world No. 1 ranking between holder Novak Djokovic and No. 2 Andy Murray this weekend. Djokovic all but passed the honor to Murray through intermediary Marin Cilic in the Paris Masters 1000 quarterfinals Friday evening.Cilic made a late-season charge to qualify for the season-ending eight-man ATP World Tour Finals. He has rediscovered the big serve and atomic forehand that earned him the 2014 US Open title. While those tools were unable to earn him a win against Djokovic in 14 previous tries, they were sufficient on this occasion, as Cilic clobbered Djokovic, 6-4, 7-6 (2) on Friday.The feat that left Murray two wins from the No. 1 ranking with Djokovic unable to do anything about it.Murray collected the first of those wins just a few hours after Djokovic flamed out, beating back an early challenge by Tomas Berdych to advance to the semifinals, 7-6 (9), 7-5. Should Murray win his semifinal, he will be the new No. 1 when the rankings are issued Monday, the 26th player to achieve the honor since the computer rankings were introduced in August 1973.Djokovic still leads Murray in their rivalry by a lopsided margin, 24-10. Their struggle has been played out on a smaller canvas, overshadowed by the Roger Federer-Rafael Nadal and even the Djokovic-Nadal conflicts. Federer is 35, Nadal 31; Djokovic and Murray are both 29 and were born just weeks apart.Nadals absence (because of a slump combined with injury) has been a key element in Murrays rise. But so has the mysterious, recent decline in Djokovics once ferocious focus, which has come since securing his long-sought career Grand Slam last June at the French Open. Djokovic hasnt been the same player since, so much so that its hard to put it down entirely to a success hangover.Djokovic also admitted after Wimbledon that he was dealing with challenges in his personal life. More and more, Djokovic has relied increasingly on the language found in self-help manuals, and this week he left his coaches behind to show up in Paris with Pepe Imaz, an adviser with the sensibilities and philosophy of a new age Svengali.A few moments in the two matches involving Djokovic and Murray on Friday spoke volumes on the state of their games. In his quarterfinal, Djokovic broke Cilic to take a 5-4 lead and serve for the first set. He promptly gave the break right back with back-to-back double faults -- his first two of the match. The wince-worthy lapse set the stage for his ensuing collapse.By contrast, Murray and No. 7 seed Tomas Berdych both looked sharp in the first set of their match. In the tiebreaker, Berdych lit into Murray and built a 6-1 lead and five consecutive set points. But somehow, Murray -- with a little help from a rattled Berdych -- survived them all, as well as two more later in the 20-point breaker, and went on to win in straight sets, 7-6 (9), 7-5 .All this does not bode well for Djokovic. Perhaps he will decide it was foolish to leave behind his two primary coaches, Marian Vajda and Boris Becker, at such a critical moment. Maybe hell reconsider the impact of his involvement with Imaz and his Amor y Paz (Love and Peace) tennis philosophy.Or maybe hes just tired of it all, burned out after having gorged on Grand Slam titles and establishing himself as one of the all-time greats. He might feel he has earned the right to smell the roses and do a little navel-gazing, contemplating the personal evolution he often has cited.Is it possible that down deep Djokovic didnt really want to get to the Paris final, where hed likely face the snarling Scot whos playing like Braveheart? Djokovic beat Murray like a tom-tom in five Australian Opens, four times in the finals. Payback is a word that can send a chill down anyones spine.Then again, we had a glimpse of the old, self-sabotaging Murray in the Berdych match, after Murrays heroic tiebreaker. He jumped all over Berdych early in the second set and secured a break. But he allowed Berdych to break him back at the witching hour for 5-all. Murray then allowed Berdych to slip out of a 0-40 deficit, and even though Murray did eventually break Berdych, he then failed to hold a 40-love lead when serving for the match and had some anxious moments before he closed it out.Those were mere hiccups compared to Djokovics failure to make it to the semifinals. Djokovic might have left the No. 1 ranking behind. Will Murray have the poise and self-assurance to claim it? Custom Derek Jeter Jersey . 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They know its no longer in their hands but the Warriors are refusing to give up on their NRL finals ambition.A 34-6 hiding by North Queensland in Townsville on Saturday has left the Warriors needing to win their remaining two matches of the season to have any hope of making the eight.With 24 points, the Warriors sit ninth on the ladder, three points behind Gold Coast.Even if the New Zealand-based club can beat Wests Tigers and Parramatta in Auckland over the next two weeks, a win to the Titans in any of their remaining games will make a top eight finish impossible for the Warriors.Its a dramatic decline for a club which just a fortnight ago defeated the Titans at Robina to move into the box seat for a finals position.But a shock loss at home to South Sydney and the Cowboys defeat, as well as a knee injury to hooker Issac Luke, have taken their toll.Theres still hope, but its not within our hannds, McFadden said.dddddddddddd.Were going to have to rely on results. Weve got two home games and we want to finish the season strong.Disappointed, because we have let opportunities slip in the last couple of weeks.Adding to McFaddens woes, the Warriors leave Townsville with key backs Solomone Kata and Ken Maumalo battling hamstring injuries.Kata failed to even start Saturdays clash while Maumalo limped off in the 20th minute.Warriors captain Ryan Hoffman said the team cannot afford to wallow in self-pity and simply have to get on with the job of winning their remaining games.Thats reality. We cant worry about anything else, Hoffman said.We have Tigers next week, thats our priority. Put in a good performance there, get the result and then weve just got to move on. ' ' '