Mario Ancic

By Paul Kiernan

Mario Ancic didn't receive any advice from his hero Goran Ivanisevic before his quarter-final victory over Tim Henman today. "He just wished me luck, you know, just enjoy and play good on Centre Court," he explained after his match.

But it was his fellow countryman, who he has been hitting with since the age of 10, who told him from a young age to focus on his volleying. "He was saying keep on improving you volleys, keep on going to the net."

These proved to be wise and valuable words as it was Ancic's serve and volley game, executed to perfection on Centre Court this afternoon, that Tim Henman had no answer for. The game plan worked and secured the 20-year-old a place in the semi-finals.

While the score was convincing, the Croat did feel the pressure of the patriotic Centre Court crowd . "I was a little nervous during the second set and the crowd were on his side." But he had no doubts about what was required and stayed focused. "I knew I had to stay calm because I was playing a great player."

Again, expressing his admiration for Henman, he knew he had to keep up momentum and could not afford an opportunity to let him get back into the game. "He's obviously a great player. He doesn't need a lot for him to come back. I knew that I had to stay on top of my game. Especially when I was a break up, I was, trying just to break him one more time."

Whilst his victory will come as a shock to many Henman fans, Ancic is a player who has achieved much in his short career. A losing finalist in the 2000 Wimbledon Junior Championship, Ancic defeated Roger Federer in the first round of the Men's Singles two years later. At the 2003 French Open he gave Andre Agassi a scare, going two sets up in their second round match before going out in five.

Looking forward to his semi-final match on Friday, his record against opponent Andy Roddick is not so favourable. Ancic has yet to score a victory over the No.2 seed, being knocked out of both the Australian and US Open Junior events by the American and most recently going out to him in the third round of this year's Queen's tournament.

There is no doubt he will have to reproduce the high standard of play displayed today if he is going to prevent Roddick reaching the Wimbledon final for the first time. However, he draws confidence in the fact his game is improving with every match of the tournament.

With his coach Rohan Goetzkee he has been focusing on the aggressive side of his game which he credits for helping him power to victory today. "I was really aggressive in some points which were crucial." And ruthless aggression will be the order of the day on Friday if he is, like his mentor two years ago, going to bring Croatia to a standstill and win the final.