Much loved by fans and fellow players, the smiling Cypriot has seen the ups and downs of tennis over the last few years.

With his breakthrough performance coming at the 2006 Australian Open, Marcos Baghdatis became the most famous sportsman to call Cyprus home, after reaching the Final of that Grand Slam.

Surpassing Andy Roddick, Ivan Ljubicic and David Nalbandian on his way to the Final, the unseeded 20-year-old emerged as a new and rather unlikely hero, who was rated as the next big star by some of the tennis greats.

Rod Laver on the eve of the Final said "'Isn't he great?"

"We talked about Roger Federer being a breath of fresh air, but so is this kid. I love the way he measures his game, not trying for too much until he has the rally under control. In the end when he's hitting that top-spin forehand with such freedom, he looks as if he feels 10 feet tall and he makes everyone else feel that way too. Baghdatis certainly seems to have what it takes. He moves so well and obviously has a great temperament. No sign of panic."

Although losing the Melbourne Final, Baghdatis lived up to the hype, winning his first ATP title in Beijing, rising to his highest ever ranking of No.8 from No.54, in just eight months, before finishing 2006 with a year-end best No.12 ranking. To top off the year, Baghdatis was also unwittingly written into tennis folklore as the "fall man" in Andre Agassi's final career victory.

Over 3 hours and 48 minutes, the pair traded stinging attacks on each other and a ton of physical and mental anguish. Agassi, the less weakened of the two, won the second round match at the 2006 US Open but not before the tennis world had witness the dramatic highs and lows and brilliance of both players.

"I just wanted to fight," Baghdatis said post match. "I'm playing Andre on centre court of Arthur Ashe. I'll do anything to win. That's all. That's what I did."

This epic five-set match went on to be the opening scene of Agassi's autobiography, "Open" published in November last year. Agassi, who is one of Baghdatis' idols, goes on to describe the Cypriot as a younger version of himself armed with meticulously clean ball-striking and "weapons of mass destruction" for groundstrokes.

He talks about the two fatigued combatants holding hands when the TV highlights of the match were shown in the locker room and showers Baghdatis with compliments, "the best tennis I have ever played. Some of the best I've ever seen."

His fighting spirit, strength of character, natural talent and his entertaining nature have made him one of the most loved tennis players on the ATP World Tour. He was adopted by the tennis world, his peers and the press and was seen as one of the surprise packages that many believe has the ability to take on the world's best and win.

"It is no surprise that the crowds always warm to this hairy, 20-year-old from Limassol who loves to gesticulate, make funny faces and scold himself when he plays a bad shot," wrote the Cyprus Mail daily in an editorial in 2006.

"In a modern game dominated by unsmiling, cold-faced, totally driven professionals, Marcos is a breath of fresh air on the court."

His combination of a powerful forehand, ability to place the ball and his immense enjoyment whenever and wherever he plays, has made him a tough component with a throng of loyal fans who roar at every winning point.

Everything was heading in the direction of Baghdatis filling the hole that Agassi left behind.

In 2008 the tennis world witnessed yet another epic battle - Baghdatis versus Hewitt. Like a reoccurring theme, the third round clash at the Australian Open saw Baghdatis lose a five-set marathon in a 4 hour and 45 minute thriller that finished at 4:34 am, the latest finish in the history of the tournament. However this was not before 555 minutes, 12 sets and 123 games of spectacular, breathtaking and prodigious tennis were witnessed and etched in the memories of tennis fans forever.

However in 2008, Baghdatis's rise to the elite came to a halt, due to a string of injuries over the next two years, limiting the Cypriot to playing just 12 tournaments in 2008. Correspondingly, his ranking fell to as low as No.151 in July 2009.

Instead of producing more dynamic, awe inspiring Tour tennis, Baghdatis was forced to reconsider his future and returned to the ITF Challenger circuit, the level down from the ATP World Tour, to improve his ranking and rebuild his game. Taking a path not often used, Baghdatis returned to Challengers for the first time since 2005. From a country where there are only 2000 registered players at seven or eight clubs and where soccer is the No.1 sport, Baghdatis was used to doing things the hard way.

He had become the No.1 Junior in the world, but was given no wildcards or other dispensations and was the first Cypriot to rank in the world's top 100, despite the sport being associated with the wealthy, when he was from a working-class background.

In the early years, the Baghdatis family had to borrow heavily to finance Marcos's tennis education. His family could not afford tickets to travel to Melbourne for what was to be a pinnacle career moment at the 2006 Australian Open. The prize money he won at that Grand Slam was used to reduce the debts his parents had incurred after sending him to a tennis academy in Paris at the age of 13. It could be said Baghdatis was used to doing the hard yards.

In was no surprise then that after returning to the Challenger circuit, Marcos quickly collected three titles and recorded a 14-1 record. With these wins under his belt, he went on to collect his third ATP title in Stockholm, his first ATP title since February 2007 and going into 2010, he was back in the top 50 and showing signs of the player that came from nowhere in 2006.

With 2010 bringing another ATP title win, his fourth, in Sydney and with the Cypriot producing his best career win against none other than World No.1 Roger Federer at Indian Wells, Baghdatis has proved he is back on-track to re-create his form from 2006.

Each win from here on, is another vital step both in his comeback, and in living up to the talent that took him to the World No.1 junior ranking in 2003 and the expectations that come with it.