Meligeni lines up for another shot at glory

Meligeni, looked ahead at his chances of beating Ukrainian Andrei Medvedev tomorrow for a place in the final, said he had no fears, having learnt all about pressure at the Atlanta Games.

8220;At the Olympics, I lost a semifinal when I had a chance to give my country a medal. That8217;s the biggest pressure I have felt in my career,8221; he said.

8220;Now I know how to play under pressure. against Medvedev it will be a much more tactical match than against the Spanish,8221; said Meligeni, who had already beaten 14th seed Felix Mantilla in the previous round.

8220;Medvedev goes to the net. I8217;m going to have to chose my shots well,8221; he said.

Meligeni lost the Olympic semifinal to Sergi Bruguera of Spain and also the bronze medal match to India8217;s Leander Paes.

8220;If I want to reach the final here I must play a lot better than today and before,8221; Meligeni said.

Medvedev eliminated Meligeni8217;s compatriot Gustavo Kuerten, the 1997 champion and favourite, in the earlier quarter-final.

Meligeni said he was not surprised that three unseeded players had reached the semifinals for the second time in three years at Roland Garros because form and ranking mean little on court.

He said he owed a lot to Kuerten and his success. 8220;We Brazilians learnt a lot from Gustavo8217;s win two years ago,8221; said the player ranked 54 in the world.

8220;My time has come, just as it could have come in the Davis Cup match against France.8221; Brazil meet the French in a World Group quarter-final in Pau in Southern France in mid-July.

The 28-year-old Meligeni, who has won three titles since turning pro in 1990, said if he reached the final he had no preference between Andre Agassi, the sole remaining seed, and Slovakia8217;s Dominik Hrbaty as a rival.

8220;It would be better for the fans and for tennis if it was Agassi,8221; he said, however. 8220;When you see Agassi play, you say how easy it is to play tennis. I8217;d love to play him.8221;