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| On the day after his 26th birthday, Nikolay Davydenko has hardly been handed a gift of a draw in the French Open fourth round. David Nalbandian beat him at Roland Garros last year, becoming the third Argentinian in successive years to knock the Russian out of the tournament. The world number 4 lost to Guillermo Coria in 2004 and Mariano Puerta in 2005, so it’s about time he broke his Argentinian jinx at Porte d’Auteuil. | | | | David Nalbandian was looking well set for a place in the final last year before a foot injury hampered him against Roger Federer. The former world number 3 has fallen to 18th in the world ranking since, but still finds himself in the last sixteen here at Roland Garros for the fourth year in a row. | |
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| Davydenko arrived in Paris with a clay court title under his belt prior to each of the past three French Opens. This year he hasn’t won yet on clay, and who knows, maybe he’s been waiting to win in Paris. He has been in fine form, most notably when he took a set off Rafael Nadal in an epic semi-final in Rome (7-6, 6-7, 6-4). | | | | Nalbandian’s confidence was low before he came to Paris. Bitterly disappointed to go out at the quarter-final stage in Barcelona at the end of April, the man from Cordoba decided to opt out of the ATP Masters Series in Rome and Hamburg and go home to recharge his batteries in Argentina. The fresh legs and sharp mind that have been evident in the first three rounds here would tend to suggest he did the right thing. | |
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| Davydenko is one of the hardest working players on the tour. This is his 16th tournament of the season and seventh straight event. He reasons that there is no better way to hone your game than by playing competitive matches, and that sharpness is very much evident in the way he plays. He is metronomically accurate with his groundstrokes on both sides, hitting the ball cleanly, efficiently and incredibly hard. He has made great strides with his service recently too. | | | | 2005 ATP Masters winner Nalbandian is the supreme all-round, all-court player. The best returner of serve on the tour, he has a booming serve, thumping ground strokes and an uncommon ability to improvise at the right times. He is not afraid to come to the net either to conclude. | |
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| Davydenko should not change a thing. He has not lost a set by keeping it simple, trusting the pureness of his groundstrokes and keeping unforced errors down to a minimum. He may need to come to the net a little more, in which case his volleying, the one area of the game where he is not in absolute control, will be put to the test. | | | | Nalbandian stood firm in the face of a barrage of aces from Gael Monfils in the third round. No less than 25 flew past him, but he did not allow himself to get discouraged. The length and intensity of that match (3hrs 35mins) may count against him though. His fitness is relatively shaky, and if carries over a niggle or general fatigue into this one, he will be stretched. | |
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| Nalbandian has won five of the previous seven matches between the two, including the last four, two of which came on clay. | | | | That record would suggest Nalbandian is favourite here, but their world ranking would suggest the opposite, so it is a hard one to call. The only safe bet would be to say it is bound to be a close-run thing… | |
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