Post by Annie on Jun 13, 2005 19:46:54 GMT 3
French Sports Newspaper "l'equipe" (May 23th).
translated by Violaine
L'equipe: How are you feeling a few days before Roland Garros?
Marat Safin: I'm feeling like someone who has been injured and who hasn't played a real tennis match since a month and a half. I need some good fights to get my confidence back and that's why I'm here in Dusseldorf this week, where I'm sure I will play at least 3 tough matches (single and double). The goal is to win one or two times, to feel the ball to be ready for Paris.
L'equipe : Have you recovered from your back injury?
MS: Completely. I feel very good physically, ready for 5 set matches.
L'equipe: Despite the injury you got in February in Dubai, you didn't stop playing, and playing bad. Why didn't you stop to take care of yourself?
MS: Because there were too much money at stake in the following tounaments. What I would have lost not playing was so huge that I didn't even asked myself about it. People can criticize me saying that I'm playing for money, but if they knew how much money it was(*) and if they were me, they would do the same.You know, it's only the beginning of my career, and I can't do like Pete Sampras, for example, who has since a long time enough money to secure his future and doesn't have to count. I have to win enough money to secure not only my future, but also my mother's, my father's, my sister's, her boyfriend's, my girlfriend's... I feel responsible of everybody. It is a big responsability. And I don't know how many time I will play. So I couldn't afford letting this money go
(*): Ending 2nd at the end of year 2000, Marat Safin was given a 1.4 million dollar bonus by the atp, that he will get only if he plays in every tournaments of the Grand Slam and the Masters Series over 2 years (2000 and 2001). A withdrawal would have cost him $350.000, 2 withdrawal $700.000 and 3, all his bonus. That's why despite his injury, he played in the 5 first Masters Series of the year.
L'equipe: Did your injury get worse because you didn't stop?
MS: No, but it is sure that I would have recovered faster if I had stopped.
L'equipe: Before your injury, you already had played bad at the beginning of the year. What happened?
MS: I didn't work enough during the close season : only ten days before going to Australia. It's not enough. Usually, I train during one month, but this year the season ended later because of the Masters Cup. I was completely exhausted and frustrated by all hte efforts I made to end up the year number one in the world. It is sure that I played too much during the last months last year, but you should have been crazy not trying everything to finish the yeat number one.
Once the Masters finished and the first rank gone, I was not able to do anything during several weeks. Then, I started playing tennis too fast and the muscles of my arm that were still tired didn't endure it. I had a lot of pain in my elbow, that's why I played bad at the beginning of the year. I still think that I still suffer from last year's excesses but I don't regret it. I'm young, and if I am in the same situation in the future, I will be careful. I'm also telling me that I'm only 20, and 20 is not when you play your best tennis. This means that the best is still to come for me.
L'equipe: Will having Mats Wilander as a coach give you more serenity?
MS: It is a great honor to work with such a famous former champion. Of course he will give me many things. We have a deal of collaboration during one year, not a contract, just a deal. We'll see after. So that it works out, I have to trust him totally and he also has to trust me. If the relation between us is perfect, he will have me exploit my potential to win other Grand Slams, starting with Roland Garros where he won so many times.
L'equipe: How important are Grand Slams for you?
MS: Very important. It is far what is the most important for me. THe rest is nothing. For sure I want to do well in the other tournaments, but it is not to win them, it is to get confidence, to prepare those 4 Grand Slams that are really important i nthe year. Ans it is not because I didn't get good results this year that I won't play well in Roland Garros. A grand Slam is a different story, I am much more motivated. I come to Paris only to win it, just like I will go to Wimbledon to win, and to the US open to defend my title. I know how much it is hard to win this kind of tournament, but the feelings are so huge.
L'equipe: Does that make you nervous?
MS: No, not nervous, it is a very special feeling, very different from the ones that wed feel in the other tournaments. I want it to remain the same, in order to motivate me better, to find the right inspiration. I can't find the right word to say how much it is huge to play and to win a Grand Slam. When you are the winner, you have everything at the same time : you become famous, everybody loves you, everybody is happy, you have money, you have points, confidence, everything is great, everything is perfect. Then you have to forget a little what happened to concentrate on the next Grand Slam. So that's what is exiting for me in the life of a tennis player.
L'equipe : Do you have a special feeling for Roland Garros?
MS: I love this tournament, it is my dream to win I, because clay is on what I have been raised, but also because of the atmosphere. And also there is Paris. Even if we don't know many people there, it is a city in which you have to get lost. There are so many places for it and also many things to do
L'equipe : Will your family come to support you?
MS: My parents and my sister will be there the 2nd week because Dinara is playing the juniors. I hope I will still be in at that time.
L'equipe: You often say that your sister will be even better than you. Do you take care of her?
MS: I don't if she will or won't be better than me, but she has many chances to be in the top 20 or the top 10. After, that's a different story. But I don't take care of her career, she has already many people to take care of her, and it's already hard enough for me to take care of myself.
translated by Violaine
L'equipe: How are you feeling a few days before Roland Garros?
Marat Safin: I'm feeling like someone who has been injured and who hasn't played a real tennis match since a month and a half. I need some good fights to get my confidence back and that's why I'm here in Dusseldorf this week, where I'm sure I will play at least 3 tough matches (single and double). The goal is to win one or two times, to feel the ball to be ready for Paris.
L'equipe : Have you recovered from your back injury?
MS: Completely. I feel very good physically, ready for 5 set matches.
L'equipe: Despite the injury you got in February in Dubai, you didn't stop playing, and playing bad. Why didn't you stop to take care of yourself?
MS: Because there were too much money at stake in the following tounaments. What I would have lost not playing was so huge that I didn't even asked myself about it. People can criticize me saying that I'm playing for money, but if they knew how much money it was(*) and if they were me, they would do the same.You know, it's only the beginning of my career, and I can't do like Pete Sampras, for example, who has since a long time enough money to secure his future and doesn't have to count. I have to win enough money to secure not only my future, but also my mother's, my father's, my sister's, her boyfriend's, my girlfriend's... I feel responsible of everybody. It is a big responsability. And I don't know how many time I will play. So I couldn't afford letting this money go
(*): Ending 2nd at the end of year 2000, Marat Safin was given a 1.4 million dollar bonus by the atp, that he will get only if he plays in every tournaments of the Grand Slam and the Masters Series over 2 years (2000 and 2001). A withdrawal would have cost him $350.000, 2 withdrawal $700.000 and 3, all his bonus. That's why despite his injury, he played in the 5 first Masters Series of the year.
L'equipe: Did your injury get worse because you didn't stop?
MS: No, but it is sure that I would have recovered faster if I had stopped.
L'equipe: Before your injury, you already had played bad at the beginning of the year. What happened?
MS: I didn't work enough during the close season : only ten days before going to Australia. It's not enough. Usually, I train during one month, but this year the season ended later because of the Masters Cup. I was completely exhausted and frustrated by all hte efforts I made to end up the year number one in the world. It is sure that I played too much during the last months last year, but you should have been crazy not trying everything to finish the yeat number one.
Once the Masters finished and the first rank gone, I was not able to do anything during several weeks. Then, I started playing tennis too fast and the muscles of my arm that were still tired didn't endure it. I had a lot of pain in my elbow, that's why I played bad at the beginning of the year. I still think that I still suffer from last year's excesses but I don't regret it. I'm young, and if I am in the same situation in the future, I will be careful. I'm also telling me that I'm only 20, and 20 is not when you play your best tennis. This means that the best is still to come for me.
L'equipe: Will having Mats Wilander as a coach give you more serenity?
MS: It is a great honor to work with such a famous former champion. Of course he will give me many things. We have a deal of collaboration during one year, not a contract, just a deal. We'll see after. So that it works out, I have to trust him totally and he also has to trust me. If the relation between us is perfect, he will have me exploit my potential to win other Grand Slams, starting with Roland Garros where he won so many times.
L'equipe: How important are Grand Slams for you?
MS: Very important. It is far what is the most important for me. THe rest is nothing. For sure I want to do well in the other tournaments, but it is not to win them, it is to get confidence, to prepare those 4 Grand Slams that are really important i nthe year. Ans it is not because I didn't get good results this year that I won't play well in Roland Garros. A grand Slam is a different story, I am much more motivated. I come to Paris only to win it, just like I will go to Wimbledon to win, and to the US open to defend my title. I know how much it is hard to win this kind of tournament, but the feelings are so huge.
L'equipe: Does that make you nervous?
MS: No, not nervous, it is a very special feeling, very different from the ones that wed feel in the other tournaments. I want it to remain the same, in order to motivate me better, to find the right inspiration. I can't find the right word to say how much it is huge to play and to win a Grand Slam. When you are the winner, you have everything at the same time : you become famous, everybody loves you, everybody is happy, you have money, you have points, confidence, everything is great, everything is perfect. Then you have to forget a little what happened to concentrate on the next Grand Slam. So that's what is exiting for me in the life of a tennis player.
L'equipe : Do you have a special feeling for Roland Garros?
MS: I love this tournament, it is my dream to win I, because clay is on what I have been raised, but also because of the atmosphere. And also there is Paris. Even if we don't know many people there, it is a city in which you have to get lost. There are so many places for it and also many things to do
L'equipe : Will your family come to support you?
MS: My parents and my sister will be there the 2nd week because Dinara is playing the juniors. I hope I will still be in at that time.
L'equipe: You often say that your sister will be even better than you. Do you take care of her?
MS: I don't if she will or won't be better than me, but she has many chances to be in the top 20 or the top 10. After, that's a different story. But I don't take care of her career, she has already many people to take care of her, and it's already hard enough for me to take care of myself.
