Schalken stands in way of Hewitt the young gunslinger

According to his biographical notes, the Dutchman Sjeng Schalken learned to play tennis up against a wall. He meets one today in Lleyton Hewitt, the 21-year-old gunslinger many expect to pick up his second Grand Slam title here.

Their backgrounds and styles could not be more contrasting. Hewitt finished 2001 as the youngest man and the first Australian to end the year as the world No 1 since the introduction of the ATP rankings in 1973. The son of sporting parents, Glynn, a former Aussie Rules player, and Cherilyn, a PE teacher, his game is built on speed, blistering groundstrokes and a desire to succeed, expressed with pumping fists and roars of triumph when things go his way.

He has been tipped for great things since becoming the youngest qualifier in the history of the Australian Open, aged 15. He has exceeded the hype, winning 15 senior titles, including last year's US Open and a third successive title at Queen's last month. The last man to complete a hat-trick in the Stella Artois was John McEnroe in 1981, the year the volatile New Yorker went on to his first Wimbledon title.

Schalken is 25 and was born in Weert. As a child he drove his parents mad hitting a tennis ball against the wall of their home. He likes Dire Straits. On paper, he will be in them today. Both his previous meetings with Hewitt have been in the last five weeks. Most recently he lost in the Queen's semi-final, in straight sets. Before that he lost at Roland Garros in four sets in the third round.

But strange things have happened at the All England Club this year, not least Schalken's progress to the last eight. A self-professed "thinking machine", always composed on court, he has never before progressed beyond the third round of a Grand Slam in 28 previous attempts, despite success at majors at junior level. He won the US Open boys' title in 1994, having earlier reached the last four in the boys' event in SW19.

"I'm not afraid of Lleyton," Schalken said, after beating Jeff Morrison, of the United States, in the fourth round. "He will not hit me off the court. Obviously, I'm not storming to the net against him, because my volleys are not good enough. But I think you are going to see a lot of baseline rallies. And he'll try to find the point where he can pressure me or where I can't get in a rhythm."

On his steady progress over the years, Schalken added: "It's taken me a long time to get this far. I'm like good wine – I get better with age." His ranking, No 23 in the world, has never been higher and he believes he will keep on improving.

If anything he has been unlucky at Wimbledon on previous visits. He lost a five-set marathon to Jim Courier in 1999 and went out to Mark Philippoussis in an epic in 2000, losing 20-18 in the fifth set. "I lost those five-setters but I still had a positive feeling when I left because I played my best tennis," he said.

Last year he won the first set against Tim Henman in the third round before the partisan crowd cheered the boy from Oxford home. When this year's draw was made, it set up a potential semi-final rematch with Henman.

"Every year I get a little better and more experienced," Schalken said. "I don't have a very big or powerful game but I've got my tactics right. I'm getting more calm. I wasn't mentally strong when I was 18 and that's why I have great respect for Lleyton because he already has that at such a young age."

Hewitt certainly does not expect an easy win today despite not having dropped a set so far. "We're good friends. I get along really well with Sjeng. He's a great guy," he said.

But he has also said that his best tennis is yet to come, that when called upon to do so he can push his game to another level.

"I've had a few tight sets and I've had to come through a few pressure situations like break points down," he said. "But I haven't lost a lot of energy and I feel able to go up another gear when I need to."

On his opponent he added: "He's a tough player. I've got a lot of respect for his game. I've seen him play great matches here. He's obviously seeing the ball really well. But I feel I am getting better and better with each match. I'm going to go out there and play as well as I can. You've got to go out there and win seven matches. It doesn't matter who you play."