Ravaged by injuries and dispossessed of his number one ranking, Juan Carlos Ferrero could have plenty to grumble about.

But that is not the style of the Spaniard who won the French Open and topped the world in 2003.

He is determined to claw his way back into the elite and says Monday's Wimbledon fourth-round clash against twice champion Roger Federer [Images] would provide the perfect launch-pad.

"Roger Federer is the biggest player on grass right now ... if I pass the fourth round, it will be the first time I'll be in quarter-finals here," he said.

"I came here playing really good this year. I start 90 in the ranking, (now) I'm 31.

"It's very important to get the (ranking) points ... it's a very important match."

The 25-year-old finished 2004 out of the top 10 for the first time in five years after three consecutive top-10 finishes.

WRIST INJURY

He missed the whole of March 2004 with chickenpox, most of April to recuperate and much of May after injuring his wrist and ribs in a fall.

He gave up his French Open title in the second round, lost in the third round here and then failed to win back-to-back matches for the rest of 2004.

He is convinced he can live with the best again, however.

"Why not? I did it one time, I can do it again," he said. "I expect to end the year top 10 or top 12, something like this."

Ferrero knows Federer will be an enormous mountain to climb.

"Roger, he's playing so good on this surface ... of course, he's favourite.

"But I'm playing good tennis here and I go with a lot of motivation. The last time I played against him, I had two match points on hard court (at Dubai in February). So if I play good, I think I have chances to fight on court.

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