Brian Vahaly does not attribute all of his success on the tennis court to his faith, but the player who was a eucharistic minister for two years does believe it aids his play.

American Vahaly, number 71 in the world, is the second seed at the forthcoming XL Capital Bermuda Open, which takes place at Coral Beach from April 14 to 20.

The 22-year-old, born in New Jersey but living in Atlanta, Georgia, is coming off what he described as his career highlight at the Pacific Life Open at Indian Wells where he beat Spain's world number three Juan Carlos Ferrero and Tommy Robredo before going down to Vince Spadea in the quarter-finals.

"My faith plays a part in my everyday life. In the whole grand scheme of things obviously I want to do well in tennis but it's not really what life is all about," he said from his home yesterday. "I take it with me when I am on the court, I take it with me everywhere I go - it's part of who I am.

"I'd like to think it helps me out but that's not to say that everyone who has a strong faith is necessarily going to do well in tennis.

"(But) I think it allows me to stay calm out there; it allows me to keep some sort of perspective. The highs aren't too high and the lows aren't necessarily too low. Success in tennis does not bring about my overall happiness in general. It's something I love to do, it's fun to do and I understand at any point it's something that can be taken away from me.

"Luckily for me I have been given some great success in the last year and a half and I would like to use that the best I can to be a good example and still be involved in the church."

The desire to be a success is something that has long burned in the belly of Vahaly - ever since he first picked up a racquet at the age of two.

"For the most part it was just something I loved to do," he said. "To be honest, I was good at it at a very young age. At that age, when you are six or seven years-old, you basically want to do what you are good at and whatever you win at. I played other sports, like soccer, but tennis was what I was best at.

"My parents just gave me the opportunity, they didn't really push me, we weren't really a tennis family per se."

Vahaly, who majored in finance and business management at the University of Virginia, never believed he would be where he is today, as mentioned 71st in the world and currently 34th in the ATP Champions Race.

"It's hard enough to be in the top 100 in general. Having been to college for four years and working hard academically, I think that is beyond a lot of people's expectations," he said.

"There is nobody with a college degree in the top 100 in the world. To say I was going to leave that group and be the best there is from the guys from college is a huge honour for me."

In addition to his religious beliefs, Vahaly attributes his on-court improvement to linking up with a new coach.

"I started working with Scott McCain in March of last year when I was ranked around 500," he said. "It has just been going really well. He has helped me out a lot, given me a lot of advice. I have really stepped up my training a lot and it has come together very nicely, doing well in Futures events and then the Challengers.

"Not many people have given me wild cards so I haven't really had a lot of opportunities. It has been a lot of work to get where I am which is why I appreciate where I am in the rankings and what I have accomplished."

It is that dedication that led to the success at Indian Wells.

"I had three wins over guys in the top 25 in the world; one over the guy that's ranked three in the world - it's hard to beat a tournament like that," he said.

Winning games against such class opponents changes your perspective, says Vahaly.

"You start to realise that you can play with the top guys in the world," he said. "I tried to take some time off and relax and soak in what had happened but at the same time now I realise that I need to start expecting to do well at these tournaments - more than anything it's a confidence thing."

On such a high, Vahaly hopes to do well on his first visit to Bermuda, though he is conscious of the strength of the field here.

"I wanted to come last year but my ranking wasn't high enough and I have been looking forward to coming after hearing great things about it," he said. "There are going to be a lot of tough players coming and there are going to be a lot of good matches. I want to get as much experience as I can on the clay but I think there are a lot of people in the tournament who are capable of winning it. That's why it can tend to be a fairly open field.

"It's going to be good, it's going to be intense and there's going to be a lot of really close matches amongst players who are very competitive. I don't really know what to expect - a lot will depend on the luck of the draw.

"I have been playing some of the ATP events so I would like to think that if I come down it could translate into good Challenger success. But this is a tournament that pays very well and there's a lot of guys in the top 100 who are going to come.

"I don't have many expectations of myself, being that it's my first tournament on clay, but, at the same time, I would be disappointed if I lost early."

American Paul Goldstein was yesterday given one of the wild cards into the main draw of the Open.

"Paul is climbing the ladder after a lot of injuries. He played a Futures last week, getting to the final in singles and doubles," said tournament director Alec Anderson. "I think you'll see him do well in the doubles and he may get lucky in the singles."

One more wild card is up for grabs and who it goes to will be at Anderson's discretion.