David Nalbandian: Can the Argentine Make One Last Run to the Top 10?

Even though he's only made one semifinal so far in 2012, the year has been fairly solid for David Nalbandian of Argentina.

He's notched wins against top-15-caliber players Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Janko Tipsarevic, Juan Monaco and Gilles Simon and lost a memorable match to Rafael Nadal at Indian Wells in which he had the Spaniard on the ropes.

Nalbandian has advanced to the quarterfinals at this week's Serbia Open and is a clear threat to win the title.

But in true Nalbandian fashion, he could just as easily go out in his next match.

The former world No. 3 is arguably the best player of his generation to never win a Grand Slam singles title. And while the opportunity may have passed in that endeavor, there's perhaps a chance he could find himself back among the world's top 10.

It's always depended on a number of factors with Nalbandian: his health, his motivation, battling through moments of inconsistency during a match. But it's always been hard to argue against his ball-striking ability.

Nalbandian is one of the best baseliners to come along in a decade and his groundstrokes are effective on any surface.

Case in point: The lone Grand Slam final appearance of his career came on the grass courts at Wimbledon back in 2002. He's won titles on clay, carpet and hard courts, too.

And looking back on his career, this is someone who came as close to "owning" Roger Federer as anyone has outside of Rafael Nadal, winning his first five matches against the Swiss legend.

Like Federer, Nalbandian is now 30, which isn't necessarily an age that marks the downside of a player's career now. If the Argentine gets through and wins the title in Serbia, then makes a mark in the Masters events before the French Open, he would be on the right track to a big rankings jump.

A lot depends on Nalbandian's health and motivation. Then again, it always has.