• What the Deuce

The assault to the top begins in Ernests

Ernests Gulbis has been tipped by Rafael Nadal to become a top ten player © Getty Images

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On Saturday a young precocious Latvian achieved something that no other man has managed to do in 2010. Ernests Gulbis became the first player to win a set on clay against Rafael Nadal for the first time this season.

Such was the fight that Gulbis put up against the world No. 3, Nadal is confident his opponent will become a top-ten player. "He was really difficult to play against," Nadal said after his 6-4 3-6 6-4 semi-final victory at the Rome Masters. "All the time he was serving at 210, 215, 216, 217 (kph). A player with this serve can be top 10 for sure."

Described recently as a Latvian playboy with a game from heaven and discipline from hell, Gulbis has been long tipped to be the next big thing in the men's game - and undoubtedly he has the talent to do it. The 21-year-old is one of the biggest servers on the circuit, having already fired over 250 aces this season, the sixth highest total on the tour. But how long can he continue to be hyped as the next big thing?

Gulbis turned professional back in 2004 at the age of 16, and first broke into the top ten three years ago, having claimed the scalp of the likes of Tim Henman and Tommy Robredo along the way. But having been heralded as a future Grand Slam champion, the Latvian is yet to live up to expectation. He defeated Tiger Tim in straight sets at the 2007 French Open, in what John Lloyd described as "a brilliant performance from Gulbis, that is just pure and utter talent."

But as we have seen time and time again, raw talent can only get you so far. Becoming a champion; to be considered in the same breath as the likes of Roger Federer, Tiger Woods takes hours of training, dedication, desire and a mental toughness.

Still only 21, he has plenty of time on his side. But when you consider that the likes of Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray and Juan Martin del Potro - who, like Gulbis were all tipped to become top-ten players as teenagers, have all broken into the world's top five and have seven Grand Slams between them - perhaps the enigmatic youngster with the glittering future has gone awry somewhere along the way.

Gulbis is one of the most colourful characters in the men's game © Getty Images

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Just a week after reaching the last-four of a tournament for the first time since 2006 in Memphis, Gulbis captured his first ever title at Delray Beach to break back into the top 50 for the first time since May last year.

After opting to miss the Masters 1000 event in Miami in favour of preparing for the clay season, Gulbis reached the quarter-finals in Barcelona where he lost to the eventual champion Fernando Verdasco, who himself had managed to chalk up just one game in the Monte Carlo final against Nadal less than seven days previously.

Surely Gulbis had no chance against the King of Clay, on course for his 17th Masters title and fifth victory in six years in Rome. But Gulbis, who on paper should not have made it past the second round in Rome, having been drawn against world No. 1 Roger Federer, has never been one to pay any attention to the facts.

"I'm never impressed with statistics," Gulbis said becoming the first Latvian to win an ATP Tour title in February. "I'm impressed I won the title. So I didn't lose a set, I don't see that as a big accomplishment."

With his disregard for convention and his feisty on-court attitude, Gulbis has been likened to badboy John McEnroe, and even in his appearance, with his curly locks all he needs is a red sweatband. But with his aggressive playing style, the resemblance has also been made to charismatic former world No. 1 Marat Safin.

With the natural talent, the aggressive but often inconsistent playing style and the colourful character, it is easy to see why the comparison has been made, and last autumn Gulbis hooked up with Safin's ex-coach Hernan Gumy. And it seems to be paying dividends.

For the first time in his career, Gulbis has a positive win to loss ratio, and he seems to have found the consistency and discipline to match his undoubted talent.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.