Tim Henman reached the third round of the French Open for the fourth time in the last five years yesterday, beating his friend and golfing partner Todd Martin 7-6, 5-7, 6-1, 7-5. Tomorrow he will attempt to reach the last 16 at Roland Garros for the first time.

But a huge obstacle faces him: Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero, last year's beaten finalist and now favourite to win the world's leading clay-court title. The two have met only once before, nearly 3 years ago in the Paris Indoor Open, Henman winning 4-6, 7-6, 6-4 against the then 19-year-old Spanish rookie.

"That match has no relevance," said Henman. "There will be a lot of expectation on him, while I've got nothing to lose. I look forward to getting out there, swinging away, and having some fun."

The British No1, confronting the 32-year-old Martin, played by far his best tennis since his shoulder operation in November. "I've upset some of the clay-courters in the past by chipping and charging, so I will need to mix it up."

More than anything, this win over Martin bodes well for his Wimbledon challenge, which will begin in a little over three weeks. A few weeks ago Henman's confidence was low and his form extremely patchy. Understandably, he has been delighted and excited by his two wins this week.

There is a possibility that tomorrow's match will be on the main Philippe Chatrier court, where Henman has never played before, the one major arena in world tennis that has passed him by. "I would love to play there, but you have to earn these things," said Henman.

With two Frenchmen playing each other tomorrow, and the three-times champion Gustavo Kuerten also to be fitted in, Henman may need to beat Ferrero to get his chance next week.

Henman had won his last three matches against Martin, although they had never met on clay. It was hot, sticky day in the French capital and the match began with the stately tempo of a grandfather clock's pendulum. Over an hour had passed by the time Henman won the first-set tie-break.

It was an absorbing encounter, with Martin volleying superbly and attempting to impose his greater weight of shot. But Henman, who moved wonderfully throughout and served with a greater consistency than for an age, recovered from the disappointment of losing the second set with a purple patch in the third, and then regrouped a second time in the fourth set to wipe out Martin's 4-1 advantage.

The match was played in a wonderful spirit, as befits two friends, although the patience of both players was severely tested by some erratic umpiring. Fortunately it had little bearing on the outcome.

Ferrero had reached the last 32 with a 6-2, 3-0 win over Chile's Nicolas Massu, who had to withdraw with an ankle injury. "It was bad luck for him but good luck for me," said the Spaniard.

Lleyton Hewitt's progress to the last 32 was not without its moments of anxiety and rich language. The Australian received a code violation for one stream of expletives but, as the world No1, he frequently appears to encourage umpires to become temporarily deaf.

In this, he is following Andre Agassi, who in his younger days and sometimes since has not been averse to the four-letter-word outburst, and has also benefited from those in the chair turning a defective ear, notably in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics at Stone (Deaf) Mountain.

"I don't feel like I came close to another code violation. I get a little heated out there," said Hewitt, who also escaped any warning when he smashed a racket. "There's stuff you look back on and regret saying, but its tough out there in the heat of the moment. I don't think it affects my tennis."

It may, of course, disturb the sensitivities of some spectators. But at least Hewitt's outbursts are usually aimed at himself and he is less prone to them than he used to be.

The Wimbledon champion knew he was facing a tough match yesterday, with Nikolay Davydenko, who beat Greg Rusedski in the first round, entering Roland Garros in good clay-court form, and only just failing to be seeded.

Davydenko had let it be known on Tuesday, perhaps not altogether wisely, that he believed that Hewitt could not win the title here.

"I heard about it through a few of my guys," said the Australian. "I've got more chance of winning it than he does."

Touch'.

Guardian Unlimited ' Guardian Newspapers Limited 2001