Sixth seed Feliciano Lopez breathed a sigh of undoubted relief when he drew his name on the side of the draw that didn’t include Roger Federer.
Both now 32-years-old, Federer has remained a hurdle unconquered for Lopez, with the Swiss Maestro winning all 10 of the pair’s meetings since 2003 – a record starkly different to fellow left-handed Spaniard Rafael Nadal.
It’s then no surprise that Lopez was full of praise for the current world No.6 at the Brisbane International 2014 draw ceremony on Saturday morning, hailing him the sport’s greatest.
“He’s basically the best player in history. He means a lot for us, for the players, for the world of tennis and for sport in general. He’s one of those people who makes the sport something very special,” Lopez said.
“I think people here in Brisbane have a very good opportunity to see Roger live because he’s 32 and he will probably play one or two more years, so I think people must be very happy to have Roger here.”
Instead Lopez faces the tantalising prospect of a second-round encounter with the draw’s other 32-year-old, Lleyton Hewitt, who he has also never beaten but admitted that now, in the twilight of his career, he would relish the chance to face the Australian on home turf.
“To play in Australia against Lleyton is always special. People love him so much, so it’s going to be a very nice match to play.”
But, in order to tick that goal off his list, the Spaniard will have to master difficult Kazakhstani opponent Mikhail Kukushkin in the first round; Lopez won their only encounter on clay in 2011 but the hard courts of Brisbane make the world No.67 a more challenging prospect.
“Kukushkin is the kind of player who’s difficult to face on this kind of court, so it’s going to be a really tough match for the beginning of the year.”
Returning to Australia, the current world No.28 may have to wait a while to put his Christmas present to use, the part-time model receiving an undoubtedly stylish winter coat under the tree this year along with some shoes and a nice shirt.
But admitting his number of Australian summers is limited, it’s a wait he won’t mind making as he looks to replicate his latest Grand Slam highlight – a fourth round at Australian Open 2012.