Martin Jaite, Nalbandian's coach and a former top-tenner, supports the bid for Federer-esque goals. "He's motivated, and we all know motivation is the key for his success. He's seeking glory, he wants to prove he can fight for the top of the rankings. I find him more mature now. He's got to stay focused and the results will come."

The proof is there, ready to be found on the Internet. Reviews, reports, videos, you name it. Just type the words: "Nalbandian, Madrid" or "Nalbandian, Paris" and it will come. Not only did he beat Federer and Nadal twice, but also the hottest upcoming stars, such as Novak Djokovic, David Ferrer, Richard Gasquet and Tomas Berdych. The match against Berdych was a turning point, as former player Brad Gilbert pointed out in Paris. "It's incredible how a single match can turn over a whole career. David was losing 6-4,
4-0, but fought, eventually won in three sets and see what happened afterwards."

Looking for what went wrong in the first 10 months of 2007, Nalbandian and his team identified mistakes that were made at the end of 2006, when he did not allow sufficient time to rest, which led to knee and back injuries. "After the Masters Cup and the Davis Cup final, he played a couple of exhibition matches he shouldn't have. Those were little mistakes we made," explains Diego Rodriguez, Nalbandian's physiotherapist.

Nalbandian's appointment as Jaite as his coach last August, after an extended period of working solo, looks anything but a mistake at this point. Jaite said he could see Nalbandian's game begin to turn around at the US Open, where he suffered a five-set loss to eventual semifinalist Ferrer in the third round. "He held one match point there; who knows what could have happened," says Jaite. "I always tell David that we achieved the goals sooner than I thought - I was expecting this for March -because he wanted to do it. It was his will."

Jaite helped him change his service motion: Nalbandian now tosses the ball forward and serves more aggressively. He's also improved his physical condition. "He lost three kilos since August, but the scale is not the most important thing; it's the relationship between fat and muscle. The first one decreased, the latter did the opposite," adds his trainer, Fernando Cao.

"Motivation is my biggest strength," says Nalbandian. "When I'm confident, I know I can beat anybody; if I'm mentally tired, my level drops."

'Anybody' includes the always-fearsome Federer, a player Nalbandian is not afraid to face. "I know him since we were juniors. I guess I don't pay him the same respect as everyone does," he explains. Nalbandian beat Federer in the 1998 US Open junior final, but the Swiss took revenge that year at the Orange Bowl semifinals, to end as the junior World No.1. (Nalbandian vs. Federer head-to-head)

"Of course, I know I must play not a perfect match, but better, maybe 11 points [out of 10], to beat him," Nalbandian reckons. That is what happened in Madrid and Paris: a mixture of sizzling returns, sharp serves, angles, backhand winners and determination that caught Federer off-guard. "He's so dominant from the baseline, it was tough to adjust," said Federer after Paris. "It's frustrating to be beaten twice by the same player. I was able to turn our head-to-head around, but now we are even."

The history of their meetings shows eight wins each, with Nalbandian winning the first five, Federer taking the lead with eight victories out of the next nine (the only loss coming in the thrilling 2005 Tennis Masters Cup final) and Nalbandian evening the score late last year.

"Federer doesn't like being attacked, he's not used to that. You have to strike first," explains Jaite. "For David, to reach the No. 1 is not an impossible task, but he needs consistency, which he doesn't have right now. We are going for it," he adds. "Nalbandian is training hard. At the same time, he is not the kind of player who needs to spend many hours on court to make progress. He is not a slave for tennis and needs to have distractions in order to succeed."

The list of distractions includes managing his own rally team, called Tango, and even playing the role of driver. In October, he made his debut behind the steering wheel in Andalgala, a small city of Catamarca, in north-east Argentina and followed with a classic cars' rally in the south of the country. (Read more)

"I do what I like, I live life, and that helps. Maybe other people think the opposite. As every office guy or business man who has spare activities, I pay attention to tennis a suitable time; then I do other things," Nalbandian explains. He did bungee-jumping in Vienna three years ago and swam with sharks in Melbourne back in 2002.

"I don't give him orders, but I do tell him what I don't like," says Jaite. "Once, he went skiing and I told him it was dangerous, but he's free to do what he wants. He works that way."

"Nadal has a life outside tennis, he enjoys it; Federer, maybe not that much… But he's got a different personality. Our cultures are totally unlike each other," Nalbandian explains. "That doesn't mean I don't think big. I want to improve my results and leave a big mark on the sport."

Often labeled as one of the sport's biggest underachievers, Nalbandian now seems committed to embracing his destiny. Perhaps, when he returns to Villa del Dique later this year, he will be carrying a Grand Slam trophy or be wearing an Olympic medal. And he will share a laugh with the children once again.

David Nalbandian Profile