World No.2 Rafael Nadal has been unbeaten at the French Open for the last three years and had a record winning streak of 81 matches on the surface until Roger Federer defeated him in Hamburg last year.

The player is dominant on the surface and looks set to have another fine season in Europe's big events in 2008. But are there any contenders to the King of Clay? Any young princes waiting to take over? Let's take a closer look.

When anyone talks about clay court tennis it's difficlut to see past the Spanish Armada. Nicolas Almagro is set for big things; he's won two tournaments on the clay of South America already this season and will be looking for further glory in bigger tournaments such as Monte Carlo and Barcelona. 

'When anyone talks about clay court tennis it's difficlut to see past the Spanish Armada'


David Ferrer had an excellent 2007 campaign and had his best results on hard courts. He is a very good clay court player but has yet to show exactly what he can do on the dusty surface, winning only in Bastad last year in a low-key affair and failing to go beyond the quarter-finals in any other major clay court tournament.

Other Spaniards to look out for are veterans Carlos Moya and Juan Carlos Ferrero and the ever-consistent Tommy Robredo. While these three players are unlikely to be dominant forces, they are capable of causing a few upsets and can easily have a good week on the tour and blast their opponents away on the clay.

Argentina is another big clay court nation. David Nalbandian, like Ferrer, has had his best results away from the clay in 2007 but managed a tournament victory in Buenos Aires last month and also a final appearance in Acapulco, showing that Nadal will need to take the player very seriously this year.

An outstanding talent in the Argentinian team is 21st-ranked Juan Monaco. Still only 23, Monaco won three ATP tour clay events in 2007 at Buenos Aires, Kitzbuhel and Poertschah, Austria.  Already this season he was unlucky to have to pull out of the final in Vina Del Mar in Chile with an injury. 2008 looks set to be a big year for Monaco and don't be surprised to see the player win one of the clay Masters series events or go a long way in the French Open.

Finally, Italy has a few names to watch out for during the European clay court season. Potito Starace is the country's No.1 at present and loves the clay. He reached the finals in Kitzbuhel and Valencia last season and has recent clay court victories over Fernando Verdasco, Juan Ignacio Chela, and Ferrero. He's a class act on the surface and is a dangerous floater in most draws. His compatriot, Filippo Volandri, has the same love affair with the clay and defeated Roger Federer in Rome last year to the crowd's delight.

Of course, the usual top players can all play on the clay surface so Federer, Novak Djokovic and Fernando Gonzalez are always likely to be there or thereabouts,  but it's good to see a few lesser-known names on the tennis circuit are showing they can challenge for the big clay court titles. But can anyone really stop Nadal?