As the world's top-ranked player on the women's tennis circuit, 20-year-old Martina Hingis has been busy competing in this year's Ericsson Open in Miami.

But the Swiss athlete will go straight from defeat on the tennis court, where she was downed in the semi-finals, to a courtroom, where she'll testify against the man who allegedly stalked her at last year's tournament.

Martina Hingis (AP Photo)

Dubravko Rajcevic, a 46-year-old married father, is charged with one count of stalking and three counts of trespassing, all misdemeanors.

But the defense contends that the Croatian-born engineer is not a stalker, having never threatened Hingis. Sending the object of one's affection love letters and flowers is no crime, they say.

"Why would I ever want to harm her when one day she could be my wife?" Rajcevic told reporters.

Despite her protests, Hingis is slated to testify at the Dade County trial. The witness list initially read like a who's who of women's tennis, with the defense announcing just days before jury selection begins on March 28 that it has subpoenaed several of the sport's top-ranked women, including Lindsay Davenport and Venus and Serena Williams.

Judge Kevin Emas, however, ruled that neither Davenport nor either of the Williams have to testify.

Venus and Serena Williams (AP Photo)

Rajcevic, who has been deemed mentally ill, has refused plea deals because he believes the feelings are mutual between him and Hingis. Prosecutors gave him an opportunity to avoid any jail time, agreeing to drop the charges in exchange for his agreeing to stay away from Hingis for two years.

But the love-struck Rajcevic refused the deal, claiming that he could never agree to stay away from Hingis for that long.

"Martina wouldn't want that," Rajcevic said, according to media reports.

Tournament Sets the Stage

It was at last year's Ericsson Open that Rajcevic, a Croatian who relocated to Australia, flew to Florida to see Hingis.

Rajcevic had already been contacting Hingis for about a year, sending letters and faxes around the world to the young tennis star.

He had followed her from Germany, where Hingis was competing in the Porsche Grand Prix, to the Swisscom Challenge tournament in Zurich. A flurry of phone calls and faxes and even a bizarre request from Rajcevic for an interview with Martina prompted an interrogation by Zurich police and beefed-up security at the tournament.

"When I left my wife, I immediately became emotionally involved with Martina. I love her, I think she loves me, but she is not yet free because of the people who she has around her. They say I distract Martina from her professional commitments. But I am no stalker. She feeds off my positive energy, she knows me well," Rajcevic told an Australian tabloid.

The defendant, who admits to sending her about 100 faxes and 50 letters, claims that he traveled to Florida for the 2000 Ericsson Open in Miami after Hingis responded to a fax he sent asking if he could visit.

Tennis Center Stadium at Crandon Park, where the Ericsson Open is held

Prosecutors contend those allegations are false.

On March 28, 2000, Hingis' manager, Mario Widmer, spotted Rajcevic at the tournament and alerted security, who quickly ousted him.

Police warned him that if he returned, he would be arrested for stalking and trespassing.

Despite the warning, Rajcevic returned to the tournament the following day but managed to elude police.

Rajcevic returned for a third time on March 30, when police made good on their promise and arrested him. He posted $1,000 bond — and returned to the tournament yet again two days later.

He was again arrested — but this time the judge set bail at $2 million.

Reluctant Witness

Hingis tried to avoid taking the stand in court, offering instead to testify via telephone, video or satellite.

"I know that I would not be able to get his image out of my head," Hingis had said.

The prosecution, led by Christopher Calkin, also pointed out that Hingis' busy schedule would make her appearance difficult.

But the defense, led by court-appointed lawyer Frank Abrams, successfully argued that Rajcevic has the constitutional right to face his accuser.

"She will be testifying and she has been subpoenaed," Ed Griffith, spokesman for the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office, told the Associated Press.

The trial date was intentionally set to coincide with this year's Ericsson Open, when Hingis would be in the Miami area.

Troubled Past

Marina Rajcevic, the defendant's wife of 18 years, has said in media interviews that her husband's obsession with Hingis began about two years ago when his engineering firm failed and they lost their home.

According to the wife, who refutes her husband's claim that the couple is already divorced, Hingis resembles her as a younger woman — and she believes her husband's behavior is his way of trying to relive happier times.

The couple, who have a 7-year-old son, separated in April 2000 when he left for a business trip but never returned home.

Rajcevic reading newspaper article about Hingis while in court

Rajcevic has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and says he suffers from "fixed delusion," even prompting a previous judge to declare him incompetent to stand trial. But that ruling was revised after Rajcevic was treated at a mental health facility.

Abrams says that Rajcevic has no desire to harm Hingis, and with no malice there is no stalking.

If convicted, Rajcevic could face up to a year in jail per count — but depending on his sentence, may not serve a single day behind bars in the future, since he served more than a year while awaiting trial on $2 million bail.