Maybe after over a week of Magnus Norman, the public may now be familiar with at least one of the names in the men's semi-finals in Paris today. If his relationship with Martina Hingis, as reported in Swiss newspapers this week, blossoms he will doubtless become a more marketable commodity.

Still, Norman's challenge in today's match against unseeded Argentinian Franco Squillari pits a totally unknown against the self confessed most boring player around. Nothing to whet appetite there you think. And maybe so in terms of personality.

But by boring Norman means he keeps his cool, something to cherish on Court Central under the current cloudless Parisian skies. For clay court watchers Norman, who comes from a small town, Filipstad in Sweden, where his mother still works as a teacher, represents the best player to emerge this year.

In his second Grand Slam semi-final, having reached the same mark in Australia at the start of the year, he deservingly occupies the world number one slot. Squillari has not shown the form of Norman and is clearly on a run and therefore represents considerable underdog danger.

A U2 fan, who lives in Buenos Aires, he is the first Argentinian to reach the semi-finals here since 1982 and one of 12 Roland Garros starters from that country.

"Guga", "Crusty", "Swampy" whatever you want to call the Brazilian Gustavo Kuerten, the hopes are that his back injury will not restrain him at this stage against Juan Carlos Ferrero.

Another crowd pleaser hoping to samba, Kuerten is also up against another unforeseen runner in the Spaniard. With a 16th seed facing the fifth and former winner of the competition in 1997, only the unknown severity of Kuerten's back injury should keep him from a final with Norman on Sunday.