No one would have predicted at the beginning of the tournament that two Spaniards would be in the final. You could have presumed that Juan Carlos Ferrero would have a great tournament. But no one in their right mind would have said Costa is my pick to get to the finals.

	Mal's Picks
	Washington Former ATP Tour pro MaliVai Washington is providing ESPN.com with in-depth analysis during the French Open. Washington, a tennis analyst for ESPN, reached the 1996 Wimbledon final.

These two players have very similar styles: They're both baseline players who are exceptional clay-courters. Ironically, the difference in this match is going to be the player who is more aggressive and ventures to the net. They have such similar games and play it so well, it will be difficult to beat the other player with such a one-dimensional game. The player who is willing to take a few more chances and be a little more offensive is the player who will win this match.

Ferrero's game is more conducive to agressive play. He plays closer to the baseline. Costa typically plays with more topspin and more height on his balls than Ferrero. That's going to allow Ferrero to play close to the baseline and play the ball early, which is what he likes to do. For Costa to win this match, he's going to have to take calculated risks and come into the net.

Both of these players have every reason to feel like they are going to win this match. They can walk out onto the court feeling confident because they are playing the best tennis they have ever played in their lives. In this situation, frequently one player just plays out of his mind, overwhelming the other and the match ends up kind of a letdown. Or both play the match of their lives and it comes down to a fifth-set tiebreak. I hope for the latter.

Considering that neither player has been to the finals of a major, an interesting component of this match is how they will react to this situation. They just don't have experience in this magnitude of a match. The player who is able to continue playing as they have in the previous six matches will be successful. You can't put into words how much pressure there is in this type of situation.

But for me, this tournament is destiny for Ferrero. This is really his time to shine. He's been one of the "New balls please" campaign players for the past two years. There have been a lot of expectations on his shoulders, and he's lived up to them up to this point. Now it's time for him to take it to the next level. He's a player of the future and he'll be in this position many more times in his career. Costa is about to turn 27, and this may be his only real chance to win a major. He might never reach the final of another major again. But Ferrero will certainly be in another final of a major again.

Pick: Ferrero in four sets