Born: 27/1/80 Nationality: Russian Seeded: 26 World ranking: 26 US Open best: Winner (2000) Recent record: 2002: 2nd round 2001: Semi-finals 2000: Winner

But things have not gone according to plan since then as the Russian has failed to add to his Grand Slam tally.

Question marks have been asked about his temperament and desire, because talent is clearly not an issue.

But this season Safin has struggled with injuries since the Australian Open - a wrist injury forced him out after two rounds, and he also missed the French Open and Wimbledon after failing to recover fully.

Stomach and ankle problems have added to a year to forget for the Russian.

His only success this year has been in reaching the final in Barcelona, but lack of match fitness seems sure to be a problem as he has only started one match since April.

At just 23, Safin is still young enough to return to the top of the rankings if he can get his game together, but his lack of activity has meant he has gone from third in the world at the start of the year to 26th.