Born: 21/2/79 Nationality: French Seeded: 23 World ranking: 24 US Open best: 4th round (1998) Recent record: 2002: 3rd round 2001: 2nd round 2000: 2nd round

Since making her WTA debut in 1995, Nathalie Dechy has continued to improve her ranking.

The Frenchwoman ended 2002 inside the top 20 having reached two semi-finals - the highlight of which was in Scottsdale where she lost against former world number one Jennifer Capriati.

This year started even better when she won the first tournament of her career, in the Gold Coast, Australia.

Her Grand Slam record remains consistent - though not brilliant - and she has reached the third round of all the major tournaments since the beginning of 2002.

At Roland Garros, she lost to former world number one Lindsay Davenport and Wimbledon ended in defeat to Ai Sugiyama.

However, Dechy is a strong player from the back of the court and readily admits she is happier on harder surfaces.