Post by Annie on Jun 28, 2005 15:37:04 GMT 3
Tennis Plus, December 2004
Translated & by Damita
Marat Safin, Russia, born on January 27th, 1980 in Moscow
Best results in the Grand Slam:
Winner (US Open 2000)
Runner up (Australian Open 2002 & 2004)
Semi-finalist (US Open 2001, Roland Garros 2002)
Tournaments won in singles: 14 (plus the Davis Cup in 2002)
To follow the contour lines of Marat Safin’s career, you’d better not suffer from vertigo. Between ups (the victory at the US Open in 2000 and the #1 spot in the rankings a few weeks later) and downs (withdrawals from three of the four Grand Slam tournaments in 2003 and a tumble to 89th in the rankings), it is true that it is breathtaking. Furthermore, the 2004 season, which just ended, has been a good summary of this disconcerting instability. He’s been the finalist at the Australian Open in January, where he defeated Andy Roddick and Andre Agassi while being ranked 86th. Then he got lost in the twists and turns of his moods, and only reappeared in the forefront in September.
Since the beginning of autumn we could almost say there was him and there were the others. He became the first player to win the two indoor Masters Series in Madrid and Bercy in quick succession. Then came the Houston Masters Cup, where he bumped into a rock called Roger Federer, after a historical tiebreak which ended by 20 points to 18.
How do you explain this enigmatic character? Which man can you trust? The one who simply receives his recent victory in Bercy and curiously restraints his words? Or the one who, after the final of the Australian Open in 2002, and even though he was the firm favourite against Thomas Johansson, “celebrates” his loss by thanking his “family” with a large smile, and by family means a bunch of torrid blondes sitting on the side of the court to cheer for him?
To (try to) understand Marat Safin, it’s necessary to go back in his lifetime, which started on January 27th, 1980 in Moscow. Son of an engineer who has been a Moscow decathlon champion, Marat is above all the offspring of Rauza Islanova, who won with Olga Morozova (future finalist of Roland Garros and Wimbledon) the prestigious Annie Soisbault Cup in Le Touquet. But in the days of the inflexible USSR, it was out of question for her to travel and hope for any professional career. On the courts of the Moscow Spartak Club, Rauza vicariously lived her dream a few years later when she taught the oldest of her children the basis of the game and when she gave him the weapons where his great strength lies today.
At 14, after an unsuccessful attempt in Nick Bollettieri’s academy in Florida, Marat had to make the most decisive choice of his life. During the autumn of 1993, he decided to move to Spain, alone, but with the agreement of his parents, and with the financial help of a mysterious banker named Bruce Rappaport who, curiously, Marat never saw. “It was the only way to really make progress”, confessed Marat later. That’s how he landed in Valencia, where Rafael Mensua became his coach. The two men have stayed together for five years. Five years during which Mensua has seen Safin establishing himself among the juniors despite a difficult acclimatization to the Spanish way of life, and then establishing himself on the professional tour.
It was in Roland Garros in May 1998 that he made his first glorious feat. Actually, it was a real thunderbolt. As a qualifier, ranked 116th in the world, he outclassed Andre Agassi in five sets in the first round on the Suzanne Lenglen court. Two days later, and on the Central court this time, defending champion Gustavo Kuerten also gave in, still in five sets. Despite his 18 years, Marat had no fear, and Cédric Pioline had to play at his best in the fourth round to stop Marat’s tremendous course.
Safin had made a name for himself and his glory was on the move. In 1999, he won his first title in Boston and played the final of the Masters Series in Bercy. 2000 was the year of the irresistible rise to the peak. Seven titles wound up in his pocket, his victory at the US Open being of course the masterpiece of his collection. To enter the Grand Slam Pantheon, he had to be pitiless on Pete Sampras in the final. The score: 6/4, 6/3, 6/3 in 1:38 hour. “Marat had a solution for everything it tried, Sampras said. He moves well for a player that tall, he serves stronger than I used to at the same age. It’s obvious that he is the future of the game”. A future which was already conjugated in the present tense. A few weeks later, at the Masters in Lisbon, he slightly let the year-end #1 spot slip, a privilege he left to Gustavo Kuerten.
Sadly, he paid dearly for his furious pace. “I think that if I had lost this Us Open final against Pete, everything would have been different for me, he says now. At least I’m sure I wouldn’t have put all this pressure on my shoulders because in the US Open final, I really played too well. I couldn’t understand why it was not possible to repeat the same achievement in every match”. In 2001, his body began to beg for mercy. His back and his knee spoiled a little bit the following events. In 2002, he came back among the leaders even though the year had been tainted by a surprising loss in the Australian Open final against Thomas Johansson. If he was unlucky in the Grand Slam, he made up for it by making his kingdom of the Palais Omnisport de Paris Bercy. He won the Masters Series for the second times, and, above all, he’s been the torturer of the French team during a Davis Cup final he totally dominated, winning his two singles matches against Paul-Henri Mathieu and Sébastien Grosjean. For the first time in history, Russia won the silver bowl.
Again, too many repeated efforts to take back his rank damaged the body of the Muscovite giant. He played only thirteen tournaments in 2003 because of a left wrist injury which occurred at the Australian Open. And, as we said earlier, he missed three of the four Grand Slam tournaments. But it wasn’t enough to knock the stuffing out of the young man, who took advantage of it to go relax on a boat. On the programme: fishing and wine-tasting sessions. It’s true Marat never had any sense of moderation, especially when it comes to partying, and he doesn’t take himself very seriously. “I really have a nice life, he said once. I travel from a city to another and play tennis. I make people happy. Tennis, I see it like a kind of cool small world”.
In a spectacular way, but without any new title in the Grand Slam (already four years since the US Open!), Safin came back to where he belongs, amongst the very best players. But to be there again, what a lot of efforts he made himself to stay calm, to repulse the storms raising in his head. Peter Lundgren, the coach who entered the service of Marat like others did before (Andrei Chesnokov, Alexander Volkov, Amit Naor, Mats Wilander, Denis Golovanov), worked a lot during the past months to channel the Russian’s mental energy. “He insisted a lot on concentration and on the need not to let anger get the best of me, Safin said in Paris. Going crazy is useless”.
What shall we expect from him in 2005? The best? The worst? It’s difficult to lay up the bet, the concerned player being very cautious himself. “I had a close shave, I know where I comeback from, he explained in Bercy. From now on, I hope I’ll be able to keep this level of play. I have the motivation. That’s the way I want to play anyhow”. And if he had to pick a place to start winning again in the Grand Slam, Marat Safin would choose Roland Garros first. Roland Garros where he played the semi-finals only once. “Actually I always feel good when I play in France, he confirmed on November, 7th after he won his third Masters Series in Bercy and tied Boris Becker’s record. The problem is that I can’t make it in Roland Garros. I don’t know why”. And he finished with a child’s metaphor: “For me, Roland Garros it’s Disneyland”. It is certainly where everything started for him&ldots;
Yannick Cochennec
Translated & by Damita
Marat Safin, Russia, born on January 27th, 1980 in Moscow
Best results in the Grand Slam:
Winner (US Open 2000)
Runner up (Australian Open 2002 & 2004)
Semi-finalist (US Open 2001, Roland Garros 2002)
Tournaments won in singles: 14 (plus the Davis Cup in 2002)
To follow the contour lines of Marat Safin’s career, you’d better not suffer from vertigo. Between ups (the victory at the US Open in 2000 and the #1 spot in the rankings a few weeks later) and downs (withdrawals from three of the four Grand Slam tournaments in 2003 and a tumble to 89th in the rankings), it is true that it is breathtaking. Furthermore, the 2004 season, which just ended, has been a good summary of this disconcerting instability. He’s been the finalist at the Australian Open in January, where he defeated Andy Roddick and Andre Agassi while being ranked 86th. Then he got lost in the twists and turns of his moods, and only reappeared in the forefront in September.
Since the beginning of autumn we could almost say there was him and there were the others. He became the first player to win the two indoor Masters Series in Madrid and Bercy in quick succession. Then came the Houston Masters Cup, where he bumped into a rock called Roger Federer, after a historical tiebreak which ended by 20 points to 18.
How do you explain this enigmatic character? Which man can you trust? The one who simply receives his recent victory in Bercy and curiously restraints his words? Or the one who, after the final of the Australian Open in 2002, and even though he was the firm favourite against Thomas Johansson, “celebrates” his loss by thanking his “family” with a large smile, and by family means a bunch of torrid blondes sitting on the side of the court to cheer for him?
To (try to) understand Marat Safin, it’s necessary to go back in his lifetime, which started on January 27th, 1980 in Moscow. Son of an engineer who has been a Moscow decathlon champion, Marat is above all the offspring of Rauza Islanova, who won with Olga Morozova (future finalist of Roland Garros and Wimbledon) the prestigious Annie Soisbault Cup in Le Touquet. But in the days of the inflexible USSR, it was out of question for her to travel and hope for any professional career. On the courts of the Moscow Spartak Club, Rauza vicariously lived her dream a few years later when she taught the oldest of her children the basis of the game and when she gave him the weapons where his great strength lies today.
At 14, after an unsuccessful attempt in Nick Bollettieri’s academy in Florida, Marat had to make the most decisive choice of his life. During the autumn of 1993, he decided to move to Spain, alone, but with the agreement of his parents, and with the financial help of a mysterious banker named Bruce Rappaport who, curiously, Marat never saw. “It was the only way to really make progress”, confessed Marat later. That’s how he landed in Valencia, where Rafael Mensua became his coach. The two men have stayed together for five years. Five years during which Mensua has seen Safin establishing himself among the juniors despite a difficult acclimatization to the Spanish way of life, and then establishing himself on the professional tour.
It was in Roland Garros in May 1998 that he made his first glorious feat. Actually, it was a real thunderbolt. As a qualifier, ranked 116th in the world, he outclassed Andre Agassi in five sets in the first round on the Suzanne Lenglen court. Two days later, and on the Central court this time, defending champion Gustavo Kuerten also gave in, still in five sets. Despite his 18 years, Marat had no fear, and Cédric Pioline had to play at his best in the fourth round to stop Marat’s tremendous course.
Safin had made a name for himself and his glory was on the move. In 1999, he won his first title in Boston and played the final of the Masters Series in Bercy. 2000 was the year of the irresistible rise to the peak. Seven titles wound up in his pocket, his victory at the US Open being of course the masterpiece of his collection. To enter the Grand Slam Pantheon, he had to be pitiless on Pete Sampras in the final. The score: 6/4, 6/3, 6/3 in 1:38 hour. “Marat had a solution for everything it tried, Sampras said. He moves well for a player that tall, he serves stronger than I used to at the same age. It’s obvious that he is the future of the game”. A future which was already conjugated in the present tense. A few weeks later, at the Masters in Lisbon, he slightly let the year-end #1 spot slip, a privilege he left to Gustavo Kuerten.
Sadly, he paid dearly for his furious pace. “I think that if I had lost this Us Open final against Pete, everything would have been different for me, he says now. At least I’m sure I wouldn’t have put all this pressure on my shoulders because in the US Open final, I really played too well. I couldn’t understand why it was not possible to repeat the same achievement in every match”. In 2001, his body began to beg for mercy. His back and his knee spoiled a little bit the following events. In 2002, he came back among the leaders even though the year had been tainted by a surprising loss in the Australian Open final against Thomas Johansson. If he was unlucky in the Grand Slam, he made up for it by making his kingdom of the Palais Omnisport de Paris Bercy. He won the Masters Series for the second times, and, above all, he’s been the torturer of the French team during a Davis Cup final he totally dominated, winning his two singles matches against Paul-Henri Mathieu and Sébastien Grosjean. For the first time in history, Russia won the silver bowl.
Again, too many repeated efforts to take back his rank damaged the body of the Muscovite giant. He played only thirteen tournaments in 2003 because of a left wrist injury which occurred at the Australian Open. And, as we said earlier, he missed three of the four Grand Slam tournaments. But it wasn’t enough to knock the stuffing out of the young man, who took advantage of it to go relax on a boat. On the programme: fishing and wine-tasting sessions. It’s true Marat never had any sense of moderation, especially when it comes to partying, and he doesn’t take himself very seriously. “I really have a nice life, he said once. I travel from a city to another and play tennis. I make people happy. Tennis, I see it like a kind of cool small world”.
In a spectacular way, but without any new title in the Grand Slam (already four years since the US Open!), Safin came back to where he belongs, amongst the very best players. But to be there again, what a lot of efforts he made himself to stay calm, to repulse the storms raising in his head. Peter Lundgren, the coach who entered the service of Marat like others did before (Andrei Chesnokov, Alexander Volkov, Amit Naor, Mats Wilander, Denis Golovanov), worked a lot during the past months to channel the Russian’s mental energy. “He insisted a lot on concentration and on the need not to let anger get the best of me, Safin said in Paris. Going crazy is useless”.
What shall we expect from him in 2005? The best? The worst? It’s difficult to lay up the bet, the concerned player being very cautious himself. “I had a close shave, I know where I comeback from, he explained in Bercy. From now on, I hope I’ll be able to keep this level of play. I have the motivation. That’s the way I want to play anyhow”. And if he had to pick a place to start winning again in the Grand Slam, Marat Safin would choose Roland Garros first. Roland Garros where he played the semi-finals only once. “Actually I always feel good when I play in France, he confirmed on November, 7th after he won his third Masters Series in Bercy and tied Boris Becker’s record. The problem is that I can’t make it in Roland Garros. I don’t know why”. And he finished with a child’s metaphor: “For me, Roland Garros it’s Disneyland”. It is certainly where everything started for him&ldots;
Yannick Cochennec
