Those crazy Russians. That's what they're saying in Paris. As Marat Safin smashed his racquets on the clay, then cried as he exited at the quarter-final stage of the French Open yesterday, the Moscow-born 20-year-old then proceeded to give a lesson on how to conduct interviews.

Entirely engaging, Safin thankfully departed from the "It's only a game, no one died out there" routine. He pulled his hair, threw out his arms, kicked his bag and, still demon-filled, came in to face the media after the most passionate match of the competition in this championship, which Magnus Norman of Sweden won in four sets 6-4, 6-3, 4-6, 7-5.

"I get very pissed at myself. I say to myself `I cannot be so stupid to play like this.' I was sorry I break three racquets," he said.

"My head . . . in the first two sets, I was stupid. I played really like shit. I'm not afraid of this. I played like this because I was scared. I didn't know what to do on court."

While Safin hair-raisingly likened himself to Goran Ivanisevic, Norman is inevitably being compared to the other great Swedish players who have won on the clay at Roland Garros - Bjorn Borg, Stefan Edberg and Matts Willander. Norman, who in December 1997 underwent a five-hour heart operation to rectify an irregular beat illustrated enduring patience and a relentlessly solid game that can turn over for hours without fracturing. He became the 10th Swedish player to make it as far as the quarter-finals.

In the end, as Safin chased a game that was edging away, he typically went for the big shots and naturally drew a series of unforced errors. Three came in the last game where Norman broke the Russian's service to win the match.

"That's his style. That's Marat Safin," said Norman. "He's a great guy to watch playing tennis because you never know what's going to happen.

"He can serve an ace and the next time the racquet is in two pieces. The tour needs a lot of those players, not boring like me who doesn't show any emotions."

Norman then hit on the issue that had been exercising the minds of many who have watched his matches. His enviable temperament and physical condition, and the fact that he almost never makes unforced errors puts him very much in the Borg mould.

Admitting that he is mentally strong, he illustrated the point by referring to the helicopter that hovered over Court Central while the match was being played.

Norman was aware of the helicopter, but refused to allow it break his concentration. More importantly he knew that the only thing in Safin's head would be the helicopter. And he was right.

"I think I'm mentally pretty strong. The helicopter, you know. Marat got a bit crazy. But I saw it as an opportunity, you know, say nothing about the helicopter and let him do it. He did, a couple of points later."

Norman meets Franco Squillari in Friday's semi-final, with Gustavo Kuerten up against Juan Carlos Ferrero in the other match up.

Squillari, from Argentina, advanced 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 past Spain's Albert Costa, again in a match which lasted over three hours.