Whether it be choice of automobiles or media savvy, Pat Rafter and Mark Philippoussis are a study in opposites. Indeed the ability to hit a good tennis ball is about all they have in common. ASHLEY BROWNE examines the respective fortunes of the "twin towers" of Australian tennis.

In 1958, Neale Fraser and Ashley Cooper played what was known as the `first twin-bed Wimbledon final'. How could it have been anything else, when the pair shared the same suite at their London hotel, ate dinner together, watched the same TV set and rode in the same car to and from Wimbledon? These were the best of times for Australian tennis, when the Harry Hopman assembly line regularly churned out Grand Slam champions. Sedgman and McGregor; Hoad and Rosewall; Laver and Emerson; Newcombe and Roche.

Even after the great man of Australian tennis left to coach in America, Australia's knack of producing its champions two at a time continued, with Paul McNamee and Peter McNamara, and then Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge reaching, if not the great singles heights of their predecessors, certainly the respect of the tennis world with their feats in doubles.

Australian tennis is now celebrating the deeds and the feats of its latest pair, Patrick Rafter and Mark Philippoussis. The former is now an unabashed national hero following his second straight US Open championship last September. Philippoussis, beaten by Rafter in that final, should not be far behind in terms of adulation bestowed. But something has gone drastically, and dramatically wrong. The former doubles partners and close friends patched up their differences during the championship but were barely on speaking terms for much of the year before then. And following Philippoussis' ill-timed and ill considered remarks post-match, their friendship may well be on hold again.

For those so immersed in the football finals and the Commonwealth Games, Philippoussis criticised Roche for sitting courtside with the Rafter camp at the US Open final. He argued that as the coach of the Australian Davis Cup squad, Roche should have been sitting in a neutral corner, so to speak. The remark angered Rafter, who pointedly dedicated his win to Roche during the post match celebrations at a Manhattan bar. Said Rafter later: `Mark and I are starting to patch things up. But it's hard to defend him when he offends a good friend."

So instead of celebrating the reality that Australian tennis is in its best shape for nearly a quarter of a century, time and energy is instead being devoted to the rights and wrongs of the Philippoussis outburst and to exactly where Roche should have watched the all-Australian final in New York. The Philippoussis camp was justified in feeling just a little peeved at seeing Roche sitting with the Rafter people, claiming that Philippoussis was strongly leaning towards resuming his place in the Davis Cup squad. However, because that had not been made public, and certainly not to Roche, how was anyone to know?

But by the same token, Roche is employed by Tennis Australia to work with the squad members and because Rafter chooses to go it alone for much of the year, Roche is the closest he has to a coach. So why not sit with the Rafter camp? What also has to be accepted, and this is a good thing, is that from time to time, and hopefully more and more often, Australians arc going to meet each other in the finals of Grand Slams and other major championships. And while coaching is banned at the majors, what difference does it really make where Davis Cup captains and coaches sit? At Wimbledon, the respective player guests sit within touching distance of each other, while at Melbourne Park, less than a dozen seats separate the two groups.

The irony of the Rafter-Philippoussis situation is that their stations in life are both diametrically opposed to where they started. Rafter is now the darling of the Australian tennis establishment, yet plied his trade on his own, learning the game in the backblocks of Queensland and largely without the financial support and resources of Tennis Queensland or indeed, Tennis Australia. Philippoussis hails from an immigrant family from Melbourne's west, but his undeniable talent has been nurtured and developed from his early teens by a succession of coaches involved with the Victorian Institute of Sport and national authorities. Yet today, his relationship with Australian officials is strained; he prefers to take much of his counsel and direction from Nick Bollettieri, the driven Florida tennis coach whose coaching can't be faulted, but who brooks no interference from national tennis bodies and figures such as Davis Cup captains and coaches.

Philippoussis' Davis Cup baptism was like that of so many of his Australian predecessors. Newcombe and Roche took him to Russia in 1994 as a hitting partner and unofficial team member. It was there that the `Scud' moniker was first affixed.

His Davis Cup debut came a year later in the disappointing loss to Hungary that resulted in Australia's embarrassing elimination from the World Group. But rather than seek to atone for that defeat, Philippoussis then chose to bypass the first two Ties of the of the following year. Not for him the mundane task of taking on the 'might' of Chinese Tapei and then Japan; he skipped both these ties, but was back on board in Croatia where Jason Stoltenberg's brave defeat of Goran Ivanisevic helped get Australia back to the World Group, where it unquestionably belonged.

His commitment has wavered ever since. He missed the opening Tie against France in Sydney last year because of injury, but like the rest of us, watched with awe and admiration as Rafter spotted Cedric Pioline a two-set lead but still won the opening rubber on the opening day. The celebrations were long and loud the following day as the Woodies made it 3-0 and in there amongst it all, was Philippoussis.

Several figures close to the team opined at the time that Philippoussis was envious of the adoration heaped on Rafter and the team after the Tie and that he was determined to be part of it from then on. Two months later he made good on that when he helped defeat the Czech Republic at Memorial Drive. And he was there in Washington DC in September when Australia was defeated by the US in a semi-final. But his enthusiasm for the Davis Cup waned almost as quickly as it picked up, and the number one topic of discussion in the corridors of Melbourne

Park at the Australian Open this year was whether he would declare himself available for the 1998 Davis Cup campaign.

In explaining that he would be unavailable for at least the first two Ties, Philippoussis said it was because he wanted to spend more time with his family. His logic there was already flawed because the Davis Cup draw all but guaranteed Australia would play at home the whole year. He could represent his country and see his family at the same time. But as the year panned out he has returned home just once, in April, when after tipping a bucket on Newcombe and Roche, he made that disastrous appearance in Mildura, just in time to see his former teammates lose in embarrassing fashion to Zimbabwe.

Following Wimbledon, Philippoussis sailed around the Greek Islands for a few weeks, while after the US Open, he couldn't wait to return to Florida, the place he regularly called "home". There is nothing wrong with that. According to the ATP Tour's Player Guide, Rafter lists Bermuda as his home, while just about every notable Australian player of the past 30 years has lived in the US because of the convenience factor Australia is a long way to commute from.

Sadly for Philippoussis, Australia has become a millstone. He was adored at home for beating Sampras at the Australian Open in `96; roundly criticised for being spotted out partying after losing to Hicham Arazi at the Australian Open this year after citing ill-health as a reason for the five-set defeat. And he was positively reviled following his criticism of Newcombe and Roche. The pair, quite rightly, are regarded as national sporting treasures and whatever the merits of the argument, it was one Philippoussis was never going to win.

Particularly not given the prevailing media attitude towards Philippoussis. His disdain for the Australian sporting media has been obvious, going back to the reporting of his unsuccessful attempt to gain a wildcard into Wimbledon in 1995 and subsequent decision not to play in the qualifying tournament. His clipped, monosyllabic answers have regularly earned him the wrath of the media corps, as has his general reluctance to grant interviews to all but a select few journalists, some of whom agree to steer clear of certain subjects as a prerequisite for the interview taking place in the first place.

Rafter, by contrast, is a media darling. When he returned to Australia at the end of last year, nothing was too much trouble: interviews here, charity appearanrces there, and it may have contributed to his entering the Australian Open on the brink of exhaustion. He was forgiven for his third round defeat by Alberto Berasategui, whereas Philippoussis, whose preparation for the Open was tuned to the minute, was not.

Philippoussis is now under the tutelage of Gavin Hopper and Pat Cash and, at last, the pair seems to be offering some sort of stability off the court. The hallmark of his career to date has been a succession of coaches and trainers including Peter McNamara, Bollettieri, Todd Viney, Roche, John McCurdy and others. But he has settled down, with Hopper getting him fitter than ever and Cash coming on board for the major tournaments.

Those who have heard Cash commentating on Channel 7 during the Australian Open will appreciate the depth of his knowledge and there is no doubt that the arrangement has already reaped rewards. Before this year, Philippoussis' best result in a Grand Slam was a series of fourth round appearances, but in 1998 he was the US Open finalist and a Wimbledon quarter-finalist. The prevailing feeling about Philippoussis before this year was that he lacked the temperament to win seven best-of-five matches and therefore a Grand Slam, but the consensus now is that it is just a matter of when, rather than if, he breaks through at that level.

If Philippoussis has been placed under scrutiny for his ever-changing entourage, Rafter has also been questioned for his lack of the same. His is a rather uncomplicated arrangement, with his brother Steve, his girlfriend Lara Feltham and Roche travelling with him at various times, but seemingly only together at the Grand Slams. There are times of the year, such as the European indoor circuit, during which he prefers to travel alone.

Life off the court again provides a sharp contrast with Philippoussis, whose passion for fast and unusual cars (the yellow Ferrari, the military-style Hummer) differs from Rafter's more modest mode of transport: a scooter back in Bermuda and any number of family cars (he is one of nine children) at his disposal when he returns to Brisbane. He even crashes out at the modest digs of the Rafter clan in Brisbane rather than a luxurious hotel or apartment block somewhere.

And if you want to find Philippoussis when he returns to Melbourne, be prepared to stay out late because this is a man who loves the night life. Rafter, on the other hand, doesn't mind getting in amongst it, but golf is increasingly his main interest off the tennis court.

So, for the present, Australian tennis is in the hands of complete opposites. Opposites who each have a load of talent and who could win a swag of Grand Slams and lead the nation back to the holy grail of the sport: the Davis Cup. But the unfortunate thing is that at present, opposites do not attract. They won't be sharing the same twin-bed apartment for some time yet.