French Open 2018: Kyle Edmund back for top 10, but he must get past a two-time Nadal-slayer on clay in Fabio Fognini

Kyle Edmund is at a career-high position of No 17 in the world rankings, reached the semi-finals at this year’s Australian Open and has equalled his best run at the French Open. However, for John McEnroe and for Leon Smith, Britain’s Davis Cup captain, the 23-year-old Briton has only just begun. He takes on Fabio Fognini here on Saturday for a place in the fourth round at Roland Garros.

While McEnroe believes that Edmund has “a great shot to get into the top 10” within the next year, Smith points out that the British No 1 might already have been ranked higher if he had not had illness and injury issues in the wake of this year’s Australian Open which contributed to some early exits from tournaments.

“He’s beating great players, he pushes the top guys really close and he is ranked 17 in the world aged 23,” Smith said. “If he’s fit and healthy all the way through, his consistency is going to grow and therefore, with the quality he is putting on the court, his ranking is going to go up.

“He’s going about his business so well. It does make a difference him being so level-headed. He is able to have workmanlike qualities. Couple that with the confidence he now has. When he goes on the court you can see it.

“If you sit at the side of the court, his forehand is sometimes just absolutely amazing to watch. You can hear the crowd, the ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ when he lets fly on that forehand, but he’s building more into his game. He is using some angles, some higher balls, his slice has improved a lot.

“In Melbourne we saw a big improvement in his serve. He’s a big guy and if he serves well then he is going to get the first strike on his forehand and then he can start to dominate play. But defensively he is also a lot better.”

Smith added: “He invests in people around him who can give him more tools. He’s not just someone with a forehand. He is building a more complete game. That will keep building as the years go by. And he has one of the biggest weapons on the tour in that forehand.”

Edmund said it was good to hear such predictions, but pointed out that he still had to go out and earn a place in the top 10. “It doesn’t just come,” he said. “I have to make it happen and I believe I can. I have good confidence in my game.”

He added: “I’m still pretty young at 23, but hopefully as you get older and as time goes by and you move up the rankings, top 10 is for sure a goal. It has to be.”

Edmund’s first meeting with 31-year-old Fognini will provide a fascinating contrast of styles, both in terms of the players’ characters and their games. Edmund, reserved and quietly-spoken, has actually worked on being more demonstrative on court, to the point where he has talked himself into doing more fist-pumping.

The emotional and often outspoken Fognini was given the biggest fine in Wimbledon history four years ago (a total of $27,500, or the equivalent then of £16,150) for unsportsmanlike conduct after hurling his racket to the grass, abusing an official and making an obscene gesture at his opponent.

The world No 18 is currently under the threat of a suspension from two future Grand Slam tournaments after being fined for “extremely derogatory and misogynistic language” towards a female umpire at last year’s US Open.

While 6ft 2in Edmund’s game is based on his powerful serve and forehand, 5ft 10in Fognini is a spectacular and creative shot-maker. Both men perform especially well on clay, but while Edmund has played in only one tour-level final, in Marrakech two months ago, Fognini has won six titles, all of them on clay.

The Italian is also one of a select group of players who have beaten Nadal more than once on the Spaniard’s favourite surface. However, Fognini has gone beyond the third round here only once, when he made the quarter-finals seven years ago.

“He’s a really good player,” Edmund said. “He has a unique way of playing. He has his own style. He knows what to do on court. He finds the areas on the court which are very good on clay.”

Smith said that Fognini was a particularly dangerous opponent because you never knew what to expect from him. “He has a lot of variety, plays great on clay, likes a big stage,” Smith said. “Because of the unpredictability of his game and of his mood, sometimes the flow of the match, especially in a five-setter, it looks like he’s going away mentally.

“But with his racket skills he can let go of the ball and suddenly those go in and he hits some unbelievable winners and he starts getting back into the match. Then he lights it up again. You really have to keep your focus on you and what you are doing and not think too much about what mood he is in at the other end.”

Fognini, who is one of three Italian men through to the third round here, which is the country’s best showing for 29 years, said that Edmund was “growing as a player” and noted how he had pushed Alexander Zverev hard in Rome last month.

“He is a player who is more difficult for me to beat on a hard court than on clay,” Fognini said. “He has a good forehand and serve. Before he wasn’t moving so well, but now he is much better from a physical point of view. I don’t see myself as underdog. It’s at least a 50-50 chance for me. I’m just won six sets in a row and only lost 14 games.”