Eastern pair lead a diverse draw hoping to set up new male order

Published on Sunday 29 June 2008 21:52

AN OLD firm has long been established in men's tennis, and with the surprise elimination of No3 seed Novak Djokovic from Wimbledon last week it is more difficult than ever to see someone breaking the bond of competition which exists between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. But 14 other men will be trying, including Andy Murray.

Ten nations are still represented in men's singles, and, surprisingly, this list does not include America. Through to the last 16 are three Spaniards, two French, two Swiss, two Russians, two Croats, an Australian, a Serb, a Cypriot, a German and, of course, the lone Briton seeking to end the long wait for a home Wimbledon men's singles champion. But although the cast-list is drawn from a diverse number of countries, the main prize is still expected to be contested between an elegant player from Switzerland and a powerful one from Mallorca.

There is, though, a growing belief that Marat Safin, the complicated individual from Russia, might be using the tournament to impose his will on the game all over again. Described as the most gifted player never to have reached a final in recent years at Wimbledon, the Russian is up against the No13 seed Stanislas Wawrinka this afternoon. Wawrinka has been billed as one to watch, and the 23-year-old Swiss has profited from being in the shadow of Federer.

Even tennis-aficionados would be hard-pressed to name him as the Switzerland No2, but Wawrinka has sneaked into the fourth round without even dropping a set. The proof of Safin's re-emergence as a major power will be tested today, but if he can cope with the challenge he can anticipate a winnable quarter-final ahead, against either Marcus Baghdatis or Feliciano Lopez. Safin looked a contented figure yesterday as he cheered on a game of net-ball (but played with feet and with the use of a tennis ball] between Nadal and Janko Tipsarevic and their coaches at Aorangi Park.

Tipsarevic has performed exceptionally well so far at Wimbledon, and has exceeded expectations by successfully filling in for Djokovic, a victim of Safin's in the second round. His sunglasses have become a feature of the tournament, as have his heavily tattooed arms. After his impressive victory over Andy Roddick in the second round, he took just three sets to down Dmitry Tursunov on Saturday and can already see a path opening up to the semi-final.

Tipsarevic faces the German, Rainer Schuettler, today in a battle between two non-seeded players. Another non-seeded player, either Marin Cilic or Arnaud Clement, will lie ahead in the quarter-finals. "I am proud of myself because I have managed to do something which I don't usually do," he said. "That is to beat a big name (Roddick] and then have a more or less comfortable win in the next round, where I managed to play with the same intensity."

Tipsarevic revealed that he spent the match with Tursunov saying to himself as many positive things as possible. "Otherwise," he said, "I get lazy." Off the court he is known to spend his free time devouring serious books. One of the tattoos on his arms is a quote from Dostoevsky. He has though, taken a break from this past-time recently, because it made him depressed to read books which philosophised about the world and then have to return to the privileged environment of professional tennis. "It wasn't really helping my tennis very much," he explained. "I'm not saying I am a better tennis player because I stopped reading, it's just that I am taking a break for a couple of months."

He is now focused on the veteran Schuettler, who experienced a surprisingly easy passage into the fourth round after beating Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in straight sets on Saturday. Clement, meanwhile, equalled his best ever Wimbledon performance by reaching the fourth round after a victory over Jurgen Melzer of Austria. Of the seeds who are left, the popular Baghdatis is the highest after Federer, Nadal and Richard Gasquet, Andy Murray's opponent today. He is on course to meet Federer in the semi-final unless a major shock reveals itself on Centre Court this afternoon, where the most eagerly awaited of today's last 16 match-ups, between the world No 1 and Lleyton Hewitt, the 2002 champion, is scheduled to take place.