PARIS -- Rafael Nadal has made a fashion statement at Roland Garros, wearing his customary white tennis bottoms that
are not quite pants but longer than shorts.
A familiar urban fashion off the court, the three-quarter pants
go by many names: clam diggers, pedal pushers, toreador trousers.
One thing they are not is tennis shorts.
The question arose: At Wimbledon, where the dress code is not as laissez-faire, what will Nadal wear?
"But these trousers are white," he said. "Fifty years ago, everybody wore those types of pants."
Ummm, not quite.
Another question arose about comfort and whether Nadal's movement was restricted by his tight-fitting, calf-length shorts.
"I think these pants are extremely comfortable. I feel
perfectly at ease," the Spaniard said, adding that his sponsor
helped pick the pants.
"Nike decided I should wear them," Nadal said. "But I like
them."
Looking Out For No. 1
Modesty aside, Roger Federer notes that he's the
best player in the world and has beaten everyone there is to beat.
So he fears no one.
But he said it's premature to hail him as the greatest ever.
"I'm too young," said Federer, 23, after advancing Friday to
the fourth round of the French Open.
Federer laughed at the suggestion he might be the best ever but
said he might earn the distinction "if I keep playing like last
year."
"Not every year will be this way," he said. "I know that."
The Swiss player has held the No. 1 ranking since February 2004.
He has won Wimbledon the past two years, plus the U.S. Open and the
Australian Open in 2004. This year he's 44-2.
Federer beat No. 25-seeded Fernando Gonzalez 7-6 (9), 7-5, 6-2
in the third round at Roland Garros. He dismissed the notion he
can't master the only major he has yet to win.
"I haven't lost a set yet," Federer noted. "What's the
problem? I don't see why I should be worried about anything."
Federer has had a relatively easy path so far. On Sunday he'll
face 1998 champion Carlos Moya, and 18-year-old sensation Rafael
Nadal looms in the semifinals.
"I'm No. 1," Federer said. "I've beaten everyone. Why should
I fear anyone?"
Mercury Rising
Springtime in Paris is not usually this hot.
A sweltering sun and 86-degree heat baked Roland Garros' clay
courts for a second successive Friday. Everyone seemed to be
talking about the weather and whether it hurt or helped their game.
No. 14-seeded Carlos Moya said he felt weak but still won.
"Today has been a tough day," said Moya who failed to convert
four match points in the third set and two more in the fifth before
beating qualifier Fernando Vicente 6-4, 7-6 (4), 6-7 (3), 0-6, 6-4.
"And the heat played a major role."
France's Richard Gasquet also had a tough day. For him, the heat
hurt.
"It was very hot," said Gasquet, who lost to fellow
18-year-old Rafael Nadal 6-4, 6-3, 6-2. "I was thinking,
'two-and-a-half more sets' or 'three more sets,' and it was
awful."
France's Virginie Razzano hoped the heat would wilt her
opponent, top-seeded Lindsay Davenport.
"We were playing 2½ hours," Razzano said. "I was hoping she
would show some weakness. It didn't happen."
Davenport won 7-5, 4-6, 6-4.