Rafter in need of sanctuary

"Un peu de silence s'il vous plait." Fat chance, the umpire was simply going through the motions. This is Roland Garros, this is the French Open Tennis Championships and perhaps of greatest import, this was Patrick Rafter on court Suzanne Lenglen complete with an adoring female fan club: "PA-T-R-I-C-K, je t'aime," proved a popular refrain.

The Australian is used to this sort of attention but desperately uncomfortable with the mantle of the pin-up boy of men's tennis.

It tends to distract from his ability and for the 26-year-old, twice a US Open champion, in 1997 and 1998, that is unjust. Current form suggests that he is one of the favourites for the second of the year's Grand Slam events, particularly following an impressive display in Rome on clay when he lost to the red dust specialist, Brazil's Gustavo Kuerten.

If Rafter had proved successful that day, he would have claimed the number one world ranking from Yevgeny Kafelnikov. The Australian preferred to accentuate the positive. "I came from nowhere and I got to the final of a Super 9 on clay. I'm very happy."

He had every reason to be equally pleased yesterday, recovering from a sloppy opening set to crush world junior champion Roger Federer of Switzerland 5-7, 6-3, 6-0, 6-2.

Rafter is an exceptional athlete as much as a gifted tennis player, his movement and agility allow him to appear "natural" on any surface. An exponent of serve and volley can be exposed by the slowness of the red clay, but he transcends those problems with sheer athletic prowess. Greater examinations lie ahead when he opposes the better base-liners.

Crowd participation is obligatory at Roland Garros and this lends to a wonderfully colourful atmosphere, more street party than cathedral. The spectators basked not only in the brilliant Parisian sunshine but also in the tennis produced by Rafter and on occasion Federer. A piece of virtuosity from the 17-year-old Swiss prodigy merited a standing ovation which he acknowledged with a wave of his racquet.

Lobbed by Rafter and with the Australian poised at the net, Federer chased down the ball and in one fluid movement, bent his knees and pirouetted, smashing the ball past a bemused Rafter. The latter smiled, raising his hand in salutation and waited for the noise to subside. He was generous in victory: "He's (Federer) very talented, he can do everything. He's got a good serve, he can volley. He's got quite a good forehand and a good backhand. . . I was very impressed with him."

Rafter was non-committal about his own prospects: "I'm as confident as I'm ever going to be on clay. Whether that makes for a very successful week or not, I don't know." The man who defeated the Australian in a recent final at Rome, Kuerten, strolled to a facile 6-4, 64, 6-3 success over Spain's Galo Blanco.

The Brazilian, who won the 1997 French Open when unseeded, is enjoying excellent form on clay this season and is viewed by most as the player to beat. It was therefore hardly surprising that Blanco, a player who has won only two singles matches all year, did not extend Kuerten unduly.

Defending champion Carlos Moya and Andre Agassi have both singled him out as the man to beat, Kuerten is nonplussed, preferring to concentrate on his next game against Argentina's Guillermo Canas.

World number two Pete Sampras was involved in a mammoth tussle of four hours and 18 minutes against Costa Rican Juan Antonio Marin eventually scraping home 6-7 (5), 6-4, 7-5, 6-7 (9), 6-4. Despite conceding the first set, the American looked completely in control when taking the next two but Marin proved tremendously obdurate, saving match point in the fourth set with a glorious backhand drive that forced a volleying error from his opponent. Marin took the tiebreak 11-9 but appeared buried when trailing 2-0 in the fifth.

Again the Costa Rican responded, breaking back but Pistol Pete displayed the character and depth of resolution to eventually force another break, this time decisive. The surface may not be to his liking but no one can accuse Sampras lacking the stomach to tough it out.