When the European clay court specialists set up shop in Monte Carlo last week, many had their eyes on French phenom Gael Monfils. The 18-year-old had reached the quarterfinals in his last Masters Series event, in Miami, and last year he won three out of four junior Grand Slams. Given a wild card into the Monte Carlo draw and a spot on center court in the first round, he would test himself against one of the hottest players on the tour.

Indeed, Monfils was primed for the biggest upset of his young career in his opening match against Rafael Nadal. But as fans and the rest of the men’s field pondered the promising youngster during a 6-3, 6-2 loss, another French teenager, Richard Gasquet, was plotting a sneak attack on the tennis world.

In a thrilling run to the semifinals, the 18-year-old Gasquet surprised everyone, including himself, in causing Roger Federer to stumble for only the second time this year, saving three match points for good measure in a 6-7(1), 6-2, 7-6(8) win. He nearly tripped up Nadal, too, taking the first set and an early service break in the second set before losing 6-7(6), 6-4, 6-3.

Gasquet won his first professional match three years ago in Monte Carlo and flashed the talent of a champion many years earlier. At age 15, he was to France what Monfils is now: the best thing since Yannick Noah, if not the baguette. But he seemed to tread water ever since – until last week.

While Monfils, an admirer of Andre Agassi, prefers to hug the baseline and slug forehand winners, Gasquet is a more artful player with a varied repertoire of shots, including a deft drop shot and crisp backhand volley. His one-handed backhand is his most formidable weapon, and he is not afraid to test its limits. Rarely does one see a top tennis player hit as many flat balls as Gasquet does. His shoulder rotation is incredible and the sheer force that he can generate, even on the run or while sliding off court – as he did on match point against Federer – is spectacular. His serve is far from dominant, but not a liability, either, and his forehand is strong, if at times erratic.

There’s little doubt that Gasquet, possessing as many shots as he does, can succeed on all surfaces. The problem so far has been deciding what to do with his many talents and when to do it. He’s played a handful of Grand Slams – the French Open, Wimbledon, and the Australian Open – and never won a round. He has performed inconsistently on the Challenger Circuit, winning some tournaments but losing early in others to lesser players. Until last week, his 2005 had been nearly wiped out by chicken pox. While Monfils received a wild card, Gasquet had to trudge his way through two qualifying matches for a spot in the main draw.

As Federer himself suggested after his defeat, the one thing Gasquet must prove is that he can play consistently. In Monte Carlo, he was exceptional. When he aimed for a line, he hit it more often than not. When he took two steps inside the baseline and thumped backhand service-return winners, clearing the high part of the net by an inch or less, it seemed as if he might hit the same shot 999 times out of 1,000.

But that was last week. In a sport where two or three mistakes can turn a routine service game into a crucial service break, Gasquet cannot expect to live so dangerously and come away unscathed. Although he earned his victory against Federer, luck played its part.

Federer was not at his best and playing on the surface that is the greatest challenge for him, and he still came within a stroke of the match. He missed two ordinary forehands in the third-set tiebreak, both on match point. On the final point, he hit a forehand approach to Gasquet’s backhand that was too short and too soft. One last time, Gasquet found the line with a rocket.

Gasquet has gone from rising star to old news and back again, and one can only hope that he is learning to compete every time he sets foot on the court. He should not be expected to become an instant rival to the 18-year-old Nadal, who yesterday went on to win his first Masters tournament in Monte Carlo over defending champion Guillermo Coria, 6-3, 6-1, 0-6, 7-5.

Nadal has gained great experience in the last year, from his Davis Cup triumphs to his near miss against Federer a few weeks ago. The Spaniard is patient and consistent, two traits Gasquet needs to take for his own. Right now, Gasquet is only dangerous. In due time we’ll see if he becomes something more.

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What one Belgian can do, another Belgian can do better. Just two weeks after Kim Clijsters returned to the women’s tour with a bang, winning two straight tournaments, former world no. 1 Justine Henin-Hardenne won her first title since she struck gold at the Athens Olympics with a 7-5, 6-4 defeat of Elena Dementieva at the Family Circle Cup in Charleston, S.C.

Henin-Hardenne, who spent the better part of a year recovering from a virus and a knee injury, looked rusty throughout the week in what was only her second tournament of the year. Still, there were flashes of her old self.

The Belgian constructs points better than anyone on the tour, moving opponents around and prying loose openings and angles for her punishing strokes and pretty volleys. At times this week she set up opponents with four or five perfectly executed shots, only to miss the clincher. There are still several weeks to iron out those wrinkles before she arrives in Paris in search of her second French Open title.