Like her compatriots in Portugal she is a warm favourite to win the tournament.

But unlike the French footballers, Amelie Mauresmo should not require any last-gasp heroics to rescue her from defeat at Eastbourne this week.

The world No. 4, together with the other top three seeds Svetlana Kuznetsova, Ai Sugiyama and Vera Zvonareva, has a bye through to round two of the The Hastings Direct Championships.

Mauresmo's delayed debut gives her extra time to soak up the laid-back atmosphere of the event on the lush lawns of Devonshire Park, a refreshing change from the intense scrutiny she experiences at the French Open in Paris, where she reached the quarter-finals.

"It's good for me to come here, especially after all the attention at the French," she said. "It's very relaxing and a little bit of a relief not to be in the eye of everybody.

"I can see and understand what Tim Henman is going through. He has showed in the last few years he is able to handle it pretty well. I don't think I would be capable of dealing with the pressure I am under at the French all-year round.

"I arrived here on Friday and I already have a good feeling. This is my first time at Eastbourne. There are a lot of courts and the grass is unbelievably good, very similar to Wimbledon."

Watching Zidane and co make that dramatic late comeback against England on Sunday night evidently inspired close friend Nathalie Dechy. She joined Mauresmo in the second round with a convincing 6-2, 6-1 win yesterday against Colombian Fabiola Zuluaga.

"I was in my hotel room with my coach and Nathalie was there," said Mauresmo. "There were seven of us altogether watching the match. For 90 minutes we were so disappointed and then we screamed for the next five minutes."

The girl born in Geneva, Switzerland, England's next Euro 2004 opponents, has plenty to shout about. Mauresmo, 24, won on clay earlier this year in both Berlin and Rome, a feat previously achieved only by Stefi Graf and Monica Seles.

Her powerful build and comfort at the net makes her well suited to grass, even though there are no grass courts in France. She missed Wimbledon last year with a rib injury after reaching the semi-finals in 2002 and fancies her chances of ending the stranglehold of the Williams' sisters.

"Maybe things are going to change a little bit," Mauresmo predicted. "We saw at the French Open that the Russians are coming and I also see myself as a contender for the big titles.

"I feel very comfortable playing on grass. When I got to the semi-finals at Wimbledon a couple of years ago I really felt my game was very effective going forward. I think I am capable of volleying pretty well and I have a lot of hope for the next few weeks.

"It's more open this year, probably more open than ever, but it's still a pretty strong draw."

While the Eastbourne field contains plenty of players ranked between ten and 60, including dangerous grass court specialists such as Lisa Raymond and qualifier Alicia Molik, Mauresmo is mildly surprised to be the only participant from the top nine.

"To me it is important to have some competition on grass before Wimbledon," she said. "Maybe the Russians are a little bit tired and want to rest, because Wimbledon is so close to the French Open.

"The Belgians (Justine Henin-Hardenne and Kim Clijsters) are injured and the Williams are probably in London practising already. I hesitated between practising at Wimbledon and playing some matches here.

"I am expecting to play some good matches. Of course, it would be great to go to Wimbledon with a win, but I am really using this tournament as preparation for next week."

And if she met Serena or Venus in the final at Wimbledon would she be confident of winning? "A few years ago I would not have said yes, but now I think so," Mauresmo replied.

The ladies final is on July 3, the final of Euro 2004 July 4, and Mauresmo turns 25 on July 5.

It could be quite a hat-trick.