Germany has not produced a Grand Slam winner in the men's singles since Boris Becker won the Australian Open in 1996 and the country is eager to find another champion.

Schuettler could be the answer.

The 28-year-old player's results over the past 12 months moved him up to fifth in the ATP Tour entry system rankings, before he dropped back to seventh this week, and he has shown enough form on clay to suggest that he can make a major impact at Roland Garros.

Schuettler shot to prominence in 2003 as a surprise finalist at the Australian Open, and appearances in the final of Monte Carlo and the quarter-finals of Rotterdam and Munich this year have given him an excellent build-up to Paris.

His improvement this year, however, has been tempered by an early exit from the Australian Open on his return as sixth seed, when he lost to Swedish teenager Robin Soderling, and a first-round exit from the Hamburg Masters.

But Schuettler's impressive performance in the World Team Cup in Duesseldorf this week has given him, and the German nation, cause for increasing optimism.

"It feels good to have the German people behind you -- it adds pressure but it feels good," said Schuettler. "I have been very happy with my performances and I am feeling very solid.

"I am winning points that I need to win and that is a very good feeling. I played great in Monte Carlo as well so I feel I am very well prepared for the French Open.

DECISIVE POINTS

"That does not mean I cannot play a bad match in Paris, but I try to learn from my mistakes. Sometimes I have not been aggressive enough on decisive points. That has changed now.

"Physically I am on top form and my attitude and ground strokes are very good also. I am keeping my cool as well so I am physically and mentally fit and prepared."

Although Schuettler will be the main focus for German hopes at Roland Garros, compatriots Florian Mayer, Nicolas Kiefer and Tommy Haas are also expected to perform well.

Mayer is the 'Wunderkind' of German tennis and his performances, including victory over number 15 seed Jiri Novak in the Hamburg Masters, have bolstered his claims for inclusion in the German Davis Cup team.

Kiefer has progressed to finals in Memphis and Scottsdale this year but, having never gone further than the second round at Roland Garros and having suffered a hand injury in Duesseldorf, he is an outside hope to threaten the tournament's favourites.

Haas was ranked 10th in the world in 2001 and 11th in 2002 before a shoulder injury forced him to miss almost the whole of 2003. But he has already given proof of his ability on his return in 2004, winning in Houston.

But the former German number one has played down his chances for Paris, insisting that he sees 2004 as a year of rebuilding after injury rather than of challenging for Grand Slams.

"The ball just doesn't go where I'm trying to hit it at the moment," said Haas. "There is still a lot that I need to improve on and it is very hard still."