Marat Safin - Definition and Overview

Marat Safin

Tennis Career

Born in Moscow, Russia, Safin is the son of top ten tennis player Rausa Islanov and Misha Safin, and is the brother of tennis player Dinara Safina. Misha managed the local Spartak Tennis Club where Safin trained in his youth aside several up and coming tennis players, including Anna Kournikova, Elena Dementieva, and Anastasia Myskina. At age fourteen he moved to Valencia, Spain, to access advanced tennis training programs which were not available in Russia. Safin gained the attention of the tennis establishment in 1998 with his consecutive victories over Andre Agassi and the defending champion Gustavo Kuerten at the French Open.

Safin held the No. 1 ATP ranking for a brief period of 9 weeks during 2000. In that year, he won his first Grand Slam tournament at the US Open by defeating Pete Sampras in straight sets and was immediately hailed as the new star to dominate tennis in the future years. However he failed to live up to the hype and succumbed to inconsistent performances, generally commented to be a result of his notoriously volatile temper. In addition he suffered a succession of injuries which affected his game and, in 2003, resulted in his absence for the majority of the season.

Safin has reached three more Grand Slam finals, all in the Australian Open in the years 2002, 2004 and 2005. He has cited nervousness as the reason for the loss in the first of them, and physical exhaustion for the second. He reached his third Australian Open final in 2005 by defeating top-ranked Roger Federer in an epic five set thriller, showing unusual calmness and superior shot selection to match Federer stroke for stroke. He later described the encounter "a brain fight". Safin's phenomenal win snapped Federer's 26-match winning streak and put a dent in his supposed invincibility. Safin is widely recognized as the player who can test Federer the most with his talent and his arsenal of powerful shots. Safin later defeated Lleyton Hewitt in the final to secure his second Grand Slam event after a five year break from the first one.

Safin has won five ATP Tennis Masters titles during his career. His first was in 2000 when he won the title in Toronto, Canada. He holds a record-tying three (2000, 2002, and 2004) wins in Paris, France, and one in 2004 in Madrid, Spain. In 2004, Safin reached the Semifinal of the Tennis Master's Cup in Houston, but was defeated by Roger Federer, 6-3, 7-6(18). The second-set tiebreak was the third tiebreak of the score 20-18 the Open Era.

Safin has attributed his recent revival and his more consistent performance to the calming presence of his new coach Peter Lundgren, saying that "I never believed in myself before at all, until I started to work with him." Lundgren was formerly a coach of Roger Federer, but they parted ways at the end of 2003. Safin hired Lundgren in the following year.

Safin is a popular figure among both fans and commentators. His tendency to become overly emotional during matches, credited for several of his losses, has resulted in spontaneous court behavior. He is noted for having smashed numerous rackets and, at Roland Garros in 2004, pulled his shorts down to his thighs after winning a point in a third round match against Felix Mantilla. This behavior, and the support he receives from legions of female fans, has resulted in Safin receiving distinction as a player capable of generating celebrity for a sport which experiences slumps in popularity.

Titles (15)

Performance Timeline

External links

• Profile (http://www.atptennis.com/en/players/playerprofiles/default2.asp?playersearch=Safin%2C+Marat) on ATP website
• The Guy From Russia (http://www.theguyfromrussia.com/) Fansite
• Safinator (http://www.safinator.com/) Fansite