Dubai : From being an unseeded player who was just two sets away from winning the Australian Open title in 2006, it's been quite a downswing in fortunes since for Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis.
A darling of the crowd wherever he plays because of his colourful persona, the 24-year-old seemed to have got his career back on the rails with victory in Sydney ahead of the Australian Open. And although a right shoulder injury forced him to withdraw in the third round against Lleyton Hewitt, Baghdatis told XPRESS he's ready for the ATP World Tour 500 event in Dubai and a lot more.
"My shoulder is fine now. I had an MRI after the Australian Open and didn't show any serious injury, so I have had some treatment and it feels good now.
"So I am looking forward to playing in Dubai," he said. "I love coming to Dubai. The people are so friendly and the tennis club is great, and everyone treats you really, really well.
"I am looking forward to coming back this year."
Reviewing what has so far been a short but eventful career, Baghdatis believes he has it in him to win a Grand Slam.
"I made the final of the Australian Open when I was only 20, which was quite young. But after that I had a few injuries and missed some time on the ATP World Tour, so I haven't been able to play as much as I would have liked, but now I am healthy again and playing matches, and I think that I can win a Grand Slam. I certainly don't think that I am too old, Rafa is only 23 and Andy Murray is only 22, so I am not that much older than them. As I said, if I can stay fit and play well, then I think I can win a Grand Slam title."
So, how has he managed to cope with the spate of injuries?
"The last couple of years have been really tough for me. I had a problem with my wrist and then with my back and it meant that I couldn't play a lot of matches. So my ranking dropped quite a lot.
"It was very frustrating for me not to be able to play and I missed it a lot. But I managed to get healthy and play some challengers and I had some good wins there before playing in Sweden and winning the title there," said the man once ranked as high as No 8 in the world.
Currently on the ascent again at No 34 after falling to an alarming 98, Baghdatis believes he can make it back into the top 10. "Winning Sydney this year gave me a lot of confidence, plus I was playing really well at the Australian Open before I had to retire.
"I had a good win over David Ferrer who is a top player and that also gave me a lot of confidence. It also tells me that I am able to compete with the best players, so you never know. I would like to come back to the top 10, it was a good feeling when I was there, so hopefully I can make it back there with some good results this year," he said.
Career highs
The year 2006 was the best in Baghdatis' career as he made the Australian Open final and the semi-final at Wimbledon
He is a junior Grand Slam champion, having won the Australian Open in 2003
Baghdatis has won four titles on the ATP World Tour
