Australian Open 2005

[tall_one]

kasey said:

Ohhh Safin vs Hewitt final
What r ur thoughts guys?

this court suits Marat's game, it does not suit Lleyton's, it wasn't more then 3 weeks ago that Lleyton was complaining about the surface here.

I do not believe that the crowd will be that much of a factor do to the fact that the Aussies seem to be a respectful bunch. I would hope that Marat has played enough davis cup matches over the years for him to have learned to ignore hostile crowds should the Aussies turn malicious in there efforts to cheer Lleyton to a victory

Marat should win this in 4 sets

[MariaV]

tall_one said:

I do not believe that the crowd will be that much of a factor do to the fact that the Aussies seem to be a respectful bunch. I would hope that Marat has played enough davis cup matches over the years for him to have learned to ignore hostile crowds should the Aussies turn malicious in there efforts to cheer Lleyton to a victory
Marat should win this in 4 sets

Nicki, I hope but... it's the centennial AO with an Aussie in the final..... the crowd will go mad. The Aussie crowd seems to be the best tennis crowd but on THIS occasion I have my doubts. Saw the Alicia match? Hopefully Marat won't crack but...
OK, I'm trying to keep myself totally calm now.... for as long as I can before the final.

[Dee]

They will be showing Marat v Federer match on eurosport in the next five or ten minutes (depending on how long the ice skating goes on for)

By the way, I like the new layout Ruth ;D

[Dee]

;D wow, i've just been upgraded to junior member...I'm so excited!

Good luck Marat against Hewitt. If it were on talent, Marat would win. I hope that Marat won't get lots of dodgy linecalls going against him, with Hewitt's home advantage etc. If he can stay calm and focused, he should win.
Please Marat please.

[Andrada]

Dee said:

;D wow, i've just been upgraded to junior member...I'm so excited!

CONGRATULATIONS,DEE!

Oh,and the ice skating is over! So enjoy the match!

[Rucinski]

Hello
Ruth... You weren't the last person, I think I'm gonna say it.................. MARAT DIT IT, HE WON, HE KICKED ROGER'S A**

Ok I'm so late cus I had a lot of things, the match was at 3:30 am here so I couldn't watch it, they show the game again yesterday at 7 pm and I recorded it but I didn't want to know the results so I didn't read the news papers, I didn't watch the news and I didn't get into internet... so finally I saw it this morning and I almost die, I was so nervous that I couldn't breath, now I'm calm (just a little bit) so I can write that I'm so happy.
Marat... Belated Happy b-day
And I hope he beats Hewitt cus he deserves to win
Ok I think that was all, that for all the videos, and pics and interviews, love ya

[Vassily]

Q. (Inaudible)?

MARAT SAFIN: That's the question that everybody wants to hear the answer. But I'm not going to tell (smiling). I mean, I keep it for me.

But I'm sure the players, probably some of the players that saw the match, so basically they know and they saw it in the match.

A secret question with a secret answer.

[Vassily]

About Hewitt, in the final...

Marat should win in 4 sets. I'm confident that he will. If he loses his game it might be 5 sets, but Marat should win.

[christina]

Vassily said:

A secret question with a secret answer.

Q. (Inaudible)?

MARAT SAFIN: That's the question that everybody wants to hear the answer. But I'm not going to tell (smiling). I mean, I keep it for me.

But I'm sure the players, probably some of the players that saw the match, so basically they know and they saw it in the match.

hmmmmzzz....it may be....how the f*ck do you beat roger?

[marcela]

I think the key will be Marat's first serve. In the last set he was getting fewer serves in. On his second serve he was going back to his old habbit of serving everything into the middle of the service box, being predictable, not mixing it up enough. Marat was lucky Roger wasn't attacking his second serve more. What do you think Vassily?

[SAFINNO1]

You guys probably know it but if marat plays well he will sweep hewitt aside in straight stes.
As i think Hewitt has struggled early on so i can see marat winning it but the 2nd and 3rd sets will be close.
As for his serve he needs to get alot of 1st serves in as Hewitt will pounce on his 2nd serve.

Finally but not least Safin has to keep his cool, i know it may be difficult with a lunatic on the other side of the court but Safin will need to be calm.

BTW Ruth this layout is great, thanks for all your time and effort.

GO MARAT AND WIN YOUR FIRST AO.

[Tita]

I like Hewitt, he's one of my favorite players, but MARAT is my favorite. And he has game to beat Hewitt, I won't say easy easy, because Hewitt hardly give up and he's the factor Home on his side, but Marat will definitely win this Torunament. I only wish I can watch it Live ;D
I'm already celebrating his victory, YOU go Marat

[Damita]

hey guys! I've translated an article from L'Equipe and Maria, it answers the questions about who Marat wants to play against in the final
I'm happy he'll face Hewitt, for the reasons Nicki gave. The court suits Marat better than Lleyton. And Lleyton will probably be very tired... of course he'll be in front of his homecrowd, and wants the title badly so i guess he'll fight, but Marat has lost 2 finals here, he must definitely want it badly too! I join Nicki: Marat should win in 4 sets

Vass>> as christina said, the secret question must be something like: so, how did you do? what's the secret to beat Roger?.... everyone would like to know

Ok, here's the article.
L'Equipe, January 28th, 2005
Dominique Bonnot

25 years old… in Melbourne

For his birthday, Safin made himself a handsome present when defeating Federer.

As usual, Jim Courier is a bit of a joker on court, asking the winner some destabilizing questions, when he realizes that the joking tone doesn’t suit the moment. Winner of Roger Federer at the end of a 4hrs 28’ battle, Marat Safin, with his cheeks on fire, looks like he is about to burst into tears. Courier realizes that and offers to give him a hug, which the Russian immediately accepts, curling up in the arms of the former champion. Then he tries to find the words that could describe his feelings and apologizes for not being able to find them: “It's a little bit difficult to give, to find right answer to explain to all the people that are coming here right now and what I felt at the match points…psychologically, it's difficult…Match point, you don't think. You go for it. When it's in, it's good. When it's coming out, it's not so good!”

He doesn’t find himself very good at that exercise in style. Courier is telling him that his birthday is over since 27 minutes (it is on Friday 28th, at 12:27am local time), when the audience starts singing: “Happy birthday to you, Marat!”. The Russian doesn’t know what to do with himself anymore. In the same time, Roger Federer is going out of the locker room, with bare feet, doing his best not to lay them flat on the linoleum of the corridor. Gradually, as Federer’s close relations are waiting for the Swiss in a little corner, the Safin clan arrives and stops in front of the locker room’s door. The first to appear is Gerard Tsobanian, the friend, the agent, the confidant: “It was unbearable! He cries out. Marat has found the key of the Swiss safe deposit box! Thanks to Peter (Lundgren). Each match he lost has been a new lesson. We had the feeling it would happen”.

And then the robust Peter Lundgren bursts in, and leaves immediately. He’s been Federer’s coach for 5 years and then became the coach of the Russian, in Roma, during the springtime in 2004. He joins his protégé without saying a word. Tsobanian laughs: “Peter has been commenting during the whole match what Roger was going to do, where he would serve, where he would return Marat’s serve. He was telling us: “Roger is slackening his pace because the sole of his feet is painful”…”

When he enters the locker room, Lundgren bumps into Walt Landers, who has been Safin’s physio for 2 years. With his funny mug he isn’t much to look at, but he is surely very efficient. He’s been Sampras’ physio for 7 years, and he was working with Becker and Agassi when they won the title here. He thinks that “Marat wants to win this tournament because it’s the tournament of the centenary”. Then he goes chatting with the others. A tall lanky blonde – as beautiful as a Barbie doll, and about whom you can wonder if she is a “safinette”; some guys with an improbable look; 2 or 3 more discreet girls; and the manager – a man with a shaven head and a Russian accent, Allon Khakhouri, who says the progress of his client is due to the quality of his relation with Lundgren: “He is humble, laid-back, and friendly. Marat likes that”.

“Marat isn’t a kid anymore”

Marat is in the press room: “I was a little bit ... I was lucky with the lob (which allowed him to save the match point Federer had). I have to say that I was lucky. But I had no other choice”, he says to begin the conference. He pays tribute to Federer: “he put tennis, you know, the bar very high”, and says he can draw several lessons from his victory today: “I proved to myself that even though I couldn't take my chances, there still be another chance if you keep on going and keep on waiting and keep on just hanging in there. It will come. It will come. If you really want it, if you really deserve it, it will come”.

He leaves the press room without saying if he prefers to play against Hewitt or against Roddick. But Lundgren gives the game away: “Hewitt. Even with the crowd, he prefers Hewitt”.

The Swedish coach doesn’t look like he’s trying to hide his emotions, even though they are full of ambiguity: “I’m dead. It was very difficult. I kow Roger so well! It was a little bit less disturbing than in Houston, because it was the first time there, but still…”.

You don’t have to insist a lot to make him tell you the story: the breaking off with Federer at the end of 2003 (“When he called to tell me, I knew it already. Instinctively”.); the five months off in Sweden; the phone call from Marat, via a close relation of the Russian, Amit Naor; the difficulties at the beginning when trying to know each other better; the two of them feeling blue after the defeat against Enqvist at the US Open; Peter giving Marat a piece of his mind, and this triggering something off in Safin’s mind; a first title won together right after that, in Beijing; and a very good year-end.

The a few days of vacation, some “adjustments” in Valencia, and they headed for Australia. It’s been a steep, but exemplary, course to get to play this wonderful match against the World #1: “the 2 guys gave them all, and Marat gave the best of him”. Like everyone else, Lundgren thinks that Safin has settled down: “He isn’t a kid anymore. He is a man. He knows about life now”, he says in a big Santa Claus smile, as he is joining Safin and his assembly for a peculiar birthday evening.

[Magda]

A great interview Stef!!! Thanks!!!

Damita said:

With his funny mug he isn’t much to look at, but he is surely very efficient

he says in a big Santa Claus smile

LOL!!! ;D

[Neo]

Rucinski said:

Hello
Ruth... You weren't the last person, I think I'm gonna say it.................. MARAT DIT IT, HE WON, HE KICKED ROGER'S A**

No, I'm the last to say it! ;D

HE WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!!!!!!
YES YES YES!!!!!! ;D ;D ;D

Way to go, Marat!
I'm not gonna say anything abt the final. I don't wanna jinx!