www.rolandgarros.com/en_FR/news/interviews/2007-05-27/200705271180293434765.htmlDay 1 - An interview with Marat Safin - Sunday, May 27, 2007
Transcribed Interview
THE MODERATOR: Questions in English or French first. First question.
Q. Some 51 percent on the first serve, not a very high percent, but you were pretty heavy 217, 219. Is that something you're quite satisfied about to be very consistent with your ‑‑ for your service?
MARAT SAFIN: I'd rather change a little bit to make it a little bit higher percentage, a little bit lower on the speed. But was a little bit difficult, was a little bit windy. And of course the first match is kind of a little bit nervous. So it's not physical to do something very good because you want to win, you want to pass the first round. It's not easy.
Q. Your form on clay and the build‑up to the French Open has been sort of up and down. How easy is it for you to turn it on when it comes to a Grand Slam?
MARAT SAFIN: Well, it wasn't even ups and downs, it was just downhill. I didn't do anything special on the clay court. I lost a difficult match in the Monte Carlo, Rome and Hamburg. But here is a little bit different story because it's five sets, big tournament. I'm not ‑‑ a lot of things actually changes, because it gives me the opportunity, it gives me more confidence to play five sets, because even though you feel you're not playing well, you have enough time to catch up and start to play better and better. You have always a chance.
Q. How did winning the U.S. Open change your career in terms of confidence you just talked about?
MARAT SAFIN: Yeah, well, it's been such long time ago, so I even forgot about how it feels. And it's a really different stage of my career. I'm not 20 ‑‑ I'm not 20 years old, I'm already 27. I've been through a lot of ups and downs, difficult moments. I've been twice injured already afterwards.
Q. But does it change how people look at you?
MARAT SAFIN: Well, it's much better to win a Grand Slam at the age of 20 than not to win at all. So it's kind of half of the job is done because here everybody who is playing tennis wants to win a Grand Slam for their own confidence, for their own success. At least I did something, you know, and I won a major.
So I think it makes a huge difference. It's a huge relief. And then it's a little bit easier to play, and you don't have so much pressure on you to do something, you need to do something well and you need to win a Grand Slam. And, kind of, matches better this way, that's for sure.
Q. Is there a year when you look back here that you maybe should have won or had a good chance to win? Any particular year you sort of are disappointed about?
MARAT SAFIN: Yeah, actually two years. The first one was in 2000, when I lost in quarterfinal when I lost against Norman, four sets, tough one. But I was a little bit burned out. I've been playing really well, Barcelona, Mallorca, a final of Hamburg. I made the final of Dusseldorf, came here only could make quarterfinals. I was playing really great tennis. That year, I think Kuerten beat Norman in the finals, something like that.
I was playing well. I was a little bit unlucky in the quarterfinals. But that was one of the opportunities of the year, I should have won it, the semifinal against Ferrero. I was not playing well throughout the two weeks here, but I managed somehow to get into the quarter ‑‑ or to the semifinals, but it was a terrible match. I was not ‑‑ I didn't have enough support for my ‑‑ I had no basically a coach or somebody to ‑‑ a little bit to guide me and support me a little bit more, because I was really on the way to win here.
Q. The weather is pretty dreadful at the moment. How did that affect the way you approached things today?
MARAT SAFIN: It's tough to play with this weather because it's raining, it's not raining, it's windy, and then it's very rough conditions because everything depends on the weather. Playing, you're playing, but also in the back of your mind, it's still the thing that now we're gonna stop, now we're gonna stop, and you need to wait for maybe for many hours and maybe even till tomorrow. You don't want to do that. So I was lucky to finish it straight away.
Q. You may be waiting a little longer to play your second round match. I think this is due to continue most of the week. How will you entertain yourself in Paris if that's the case?
MARAT SAFIN: That is easy. I know that once you pass the first round, you can wait as much as you want for a second one. You need to finish the match. It's gonna be a tough one, so the advantage is on my side.
So I'll have to entertain myself somehow. I don't know how, but I will.
Q. Is this a Grand Slam where you feel the most comfortable because you sort of grew up a little bit on the clay in Spain?
MARAT SAFIN: It's still my favorite surface, I think. I really love to play on clay even though I didn't get good results for the last couple of years. But still very comfortable.
I love to come here, great courts, good bounces, good people. Even though it was raining, it was pretty lot of people coming. So it's ‑‑ it's my place.
Q. And everybody when they talk about you these days it's if you can play your best, you're sort of a wild card, a bit dangerous, you know, if you play your best, like anybody is afraid of you. How much do you know about whether you can play your best?
MARAT SAFIN: I can, but I don't know when it's coming, so I need to stick around and get through the couple of rounds to get the groove. For me, it was always a problem to play the first rounds because I'm not ‑‑ I need to get the rhythm and I need to get the timing in order to play good tennis. And if I'm playing well the first rounds and the guys they see straightaway, then I have lot of problems. That's what happened for a lot of tournaments already. That I always lost in the first round. It's not like I lost quarterfinals, semifinal.
But I'm looking forward. Still I think I have ‑‑ I can manage to pass two rounds and then I'm gonna be dangerous or get a little bit of confidence and then I'll get my rhythm and timing.
Q. In your opinion do you consider that in this point, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer have the bigger chances to make it to the final, and in this case, whom do you pick?
MARAT SAFIN: Obviously, of course, they're the favorites and they've been playing already for the last three years, I think. They've been winning the tennis and nobody even can come close to beat them on clay, especially here. It's gonna be a tough one. Also a tough call, who gonna win this year, Roger or Nadal. Because Roger beat him actually 6‑Love in the third in Hamburg. And it looks like he finally found how to play against Rafa. But I'm pretty sure that Rafa will be playing for many tournaments already, and I think he's tired. So the final in Hamburg, I don't think it's a result who make a difference.
But still it's an advantage for Roger, and also for Nadal to be careful a little bit more. And it's gonna be tough one, 50/50 chances. It all than depends for both of them, how they are they gonna start, how it's gonna develop the match, and who gonna get scared first.
Q. When you're in Monte Carlo, you had that opening round and the match points that kept slipping away. How frustrating was that match for you? Did you need a bit of time to get over that?
MARAT SAFIN: No, just wasn't easy for me because was everything, I was playing great tennis, playing really well, slipped away the match, and to wanted to play against Rafa to try myself against him. I never play against him. It was kind of a challenge for me.
And then just it hurts, this kind of losses, and also for the confidence is not really good. And especially when I'm playing well and you're losing these kind of matches. It's very tough. So professionally, you have to get over it and move on and it's what I am doing.
THE MODERATOR: Last few English or French please.
Q. The next round is against Serbs, Vemic or Tipsarevic. What do you know about them?
MARAT SAFIN: I play against Tipsarevic in Moscow, and fast surface, tough match, three sets. He was up a break in the third one, and he been around for a long time, so he has a lot of experience, beat a lot of good guys. Been close to beat Roddick in Wimbledon last year and Nalbandian this year in the first round Open.
Vemic, we basically grew up together playing in challenger and satellites, so I know him pretty well. Big server. So let's see how it's gonna end up. It looks like it's pretty tight match.
Q. Vemic?
MARAT SAFIN: Vemic, I know him since maybe '97. So for ten years, we've been around. We play challenger together in doubles. So I know both of them pretty well.
Q. Have you been surprised by the relative nonfighting spirit of your Spanish opponent?
MARAT SAFIN: You have to understand also that he's 30 years old and he passed the qually and a lot of tough matches, of course, hard for the matches here. He was sore from playing all ‑‑ from qualifying, and it was difficult for him to play at good level in order to beat me. And, of course, it's a little bit normal and it's also tough for him because he's been injured for a long time. And it's a little bit different ‑‑ different ball game.
But you have to give him a credit, you know, to pass the quallies and to make sure and stick around when you are 30 years old and play the ‑‑ get back to a challenges and try to fight for it to get back to it. It's pretty tough.
THE MODERATOR: Last English question.
Q. When Roger lost twice to Canas in America and then to Volandri in Rome, was there much of a reaction amongst the players in terms of ‑‑ is there any thought that, you know, oh, now he's vulnerable, somebody who's been dominating for such a long time, things can change quickly?
MARAT SAFIN: If he lose three matches in the first part of the year, it doesn't mean he lost it completely. I think he's ‑‑ he has enough tennis and he has enough confidence and experience to get out of there. Everybody can slip, and the only players, they really thought the same way. He, of course not everybody is waiting who can surprise him and who can beat him.
But he's challenging and he's ‑‑ he deals real well with the pressure and it doesn't really matter if he lose twice to Canas, five times to Canas, and then he lose to Volandri all of a sudden in Rome. It doesn't matter. He comes and beats Nadal in the final of Hamburg, so it doesn't really matter. And he'll be No. 1 for a long time and nobody can do anything about it looks like that.
The French dubbing is A N N O Y I N G though... 
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