Intrigue as once-divergent paths of Gulbis and Djokovic cross again at Roland Garros
Latvian's lifestyle choices made it seem unlikely he'd go toe to toe with Serbian world No 2 - until recently
The two worlds of Latvian wildman Ernests Gulbis and Serb joker Novak Djokovic collide at Roland Garros tomorrow with a place in the French Open final at stake.
Gulbis has stormed into his first major semi-final like a hurricane, with Roger Federer a high-profile casualty.
The outspoken 25-year-old has always had the talent - he just hasn't had the dedication, admitting as recently as 2012 he would often skip practice for five days.
But having described his late blossoming as riding "the last train", Gulbis, the son of one of Latvia's richest men, has latterly realised he no longer wants a life without challenges.
I never had problems in school. Tennis, everything was coming easy. I thought I'm just gonna grind in life like this, easy without any effort, and be successful.
"I just thought everything is gonna come too easy for me because everything in life was just coming. I wasn't really thinking about it and not putting enough effort into it," he said. "I never had problems in school. Tennis, everything was coming easy. I thought I'm just gonna grind in life like this, easy without any effort, and be successful.