#Greg Rusedski

[sa7abnews]

The Russian ‘bad boy’ who brought tennis glory to his country

New Post has been published on https://sa7ab.info/2024/08/16/the-russian-bad-boy-who-brought-tennis-glory-to-his-country/

The Russian ‘bad boy’ who brought tennis glory to his country

With the 2023 Australian Open nearing its conclusion, we look back at a charismatic Russian former winner of the event

The Australian Open runs to its conclusion this weekend, with the first Grand Slam of 2023 set to be bookended on Sunday when the men’s championship match is played between record nine-time winner Novak Djokovic and debut finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas. With the exit of Karen Khachanov in the semifinals at the hands of Tsitsipas, Russia is again left ruing a missed opportunity for glory in Melbourne after Daniil Medvedev was beaten in successive finals in the past two editions of the tournament. Indeed, it is fast approaching two decades since the last Russian man won the title Down Under. On that occasion it was Marat Safin, one of the most charismatic, combustible characters of his or any other generation of tennis talent. The second Russian to win the Australian Open after Yevgeny Kafelnikov in 1999, Safin struck gold in 2005 in Melbourne by coming back to beat local favorite Lleyton Hewitt in what was his last great individual triumph. Despite retiring prematurely in 2009, Safin is far from forgotten in the tennis world – as evidenced by a viral throwback photo from 2002 which circulated during the current edition of the Australian Open, and which featured the eye-catching female following in Safin’s box during his playing days. A playboy once described as a “two-meter embodiment of women’s dreams” by compatriot Dmitry Tursunov, Safin was often admired for his “frankness, outrageousness and charm” – married with no shortage of talent on the tennis court. The Australian Open was a tournament that Safin graced with all of those attributes, reaching the final three times. The re-emergence of the famous photo from 2002, where he allegedly partied before being beaten by underdog Thomas Johansson in the final, has led to many recalling one of the most colorful characters to have played the game.

Marat Safin's box in 2002 Australian Open, where he lost in the final to Thomas Johansson 😄 pic.twitter.com/B6m4bOghok— Luigi Gatto (@gigicat7_) January 13, 2023

Rise to the top   Born in Moscow to Tatar Muslim parents, Safin showed early promise as a tennis prodigy and moved to Valencia in Spain as a 14-year-old to access advanced tennis training programs. As a teenager who – in his own words – grew “very fast … with no muscles,” Safin felt that Spain’s clay courts would be better for his knees. The surface was arguably better for his overall career progression and development. After turning professional in 1997, he took the scalps of Andre Agassi and reigning champion Gustavo Kuerten at the 1998 French Open, before being eliminated in the fourth round by two-time Grand Slam finalist Cedric Pioline. Agassi pulled one back against Safin by beating him in the final of the Paris Masters in November 1999, but Safin had already tasted triumph by pipping Brit Greg Rusedski in an ATP final in Boston in August. Turning 20 on January 27, 2000, the new millennium ushered in Safin’s most successful year in which he set records that remain intact to this day. He won a Masters tournament in Canada, then beat four-time champion and 90s great Pete Sampras in straight sets at Flushing Meadows to become the third youngest winner of the US Open aged just 20 years and 228 days. 

A fresh-faced Safin won a stunning victory at Flushing Meadows in 2000.

©  Jon Buckle / EMPICS via Getty Images

Safin’s maiden Grand Slam title also saw him become the first Russian to win the title in New York – and it was a full 21 years until Daniil Medvedev became the second to do so by beating Novak Djokovic in the 2021 final. The youngest Russian winner of any major tournament, Safin went on to become the youngest player of the Open Era at the time to reach the world number one ranking with his number of titles (seven) the most on the ATP Tour that year.  “For me it was very strange in my experience reaching number one. I wasn’t ready for that because I couldn’t imagine just a few months earlier that I’d have the chance to become number in the world. I was Top 50, dropping, playing very badly,” Safin later confessed to ATPTour.com. “I underestimated myself… I didn’t believe in myself, and I was seeing myself weaker than others, which is unbelievable. Now I can understand tennis better.”

What a year 2000 was for Marat Safin…🔹 US Open champion🔹 ATP Finals semifinalist 🔹 Seven singles titlesOn this day 21-years-ago, the Russian reached the 🔝 of the ATP rankings for the first time in his career! pic.twitter.com/MgaqLwMpYd— US Open Tennis (@usopen) November 20, 2021

The fire and the fury  By now, Safin was building a reputation as a fiery personality who brought everything to the court and who would often take out his frustrations on his racket. Not only boasting generational talent, he had the heart to battle through adversity and was a must-see draw for the crowds, whether on fire at his unbeatable best or out of sorts due to his temperament. In the Paris Masters final of 2000 against Mark Philippoussis, for example, Safin became bloodied from diving for a volley and beat the Aussie with a bandage over his right eyebrow through five sets and a tiebreak.  While 2001 proved relatively quiet, save for two ATP finals victories in Uzbekistan and St. Petersburg, Safin reached his first Australian Open final in 2002 but was upset by Thomas Johansson – turning heads with the aforementioned entourage in his box along the way. Some years later, another controversial character in Daniel Kollerer claimed to have seen Safin partying and drinking before the match played in the run-up to his 22nd birthday.  “He [was] so drunk he can’t even walk on his two feet, it can not be that bad,” reminisced the German to Unbreakable Media while talking about his own descent into a hedonistic lifestyle. “He could never win because he was so drunk, unbelievable. He was celebrating the night before like it was his birthday party. He celebrated like he already won the Australian Open.”

Safin was often portrayed as something of a party boy.

©  Fairfax Media via Getty Images via Getty Images

Safin’s first French Open semifinal ended in disappointment too, and he also fell short of regaining his world number one spot. But he ended the year well by beating the holder of the spot, Hewitt, to clinch the Paris Masters again and by leading Russia to its maiden Davis Cup title in December.  A string of injuries blighted Safin’s 2003, as they did for much of the remainder of his career. Yet he returned to the Australian Open in fine form in early 2004 by topping number one seed Andy Roddick in the quarterfinals and Andre Agassi in the semi-finals, ending the American legend’s 26-match winning streak at the tournament. Those five-set affairs drained Safin, however, and rising star Roger Federer blew him away in straight sets in the final to become world number one for the first time in his career.  That year was another which started with disappointment but ended well for Safin. Losing his head at the French Open and receiving a $500 fine for “racquet abuse” but strangely not for dropping his pants, he blasted “all the people who runs the sport” in a memorable interview.

“They have no clue!” said Safin ranted. “It’s a pity that tennis is really going down the drain… They do everything that is possible just to take away the entertainment. You’re not allowed to do that; you’re not allowed to do this. You’re not allowed to speak whenever you want to speak…” Later, though, he claimed a third Paris Masters crown and became the first man to win the final two Masters of the calendar in the same year by sealing victory in Madrid.   Success Down Under and early retirement  In 2005, Safin got off to the best possible start by reaching his third Australian Open final in four years – and this time finishing the job. In the semifinals, he got his revenge over Federer by winning a five-set thriller, then swatting away Hewitt in the final in four sets after going one down. 

Safin tasted Grand Slam success for the second time in Australia in 2005.

©  Fairfax Media via Getty Images via Getty Images

Sadly, injuries would keep Safin off the court for the rest of the season. Save for winning the Davis Cup with Russia for a second time in 2006, Safin was often perceived as something of a spent force at the top level, except for becoming the first Russian to reach the semifinals at Wimbledon, where Federer beat him, even though Safin harbored an open disdain for grass.  Despite retiring prematurely in late 2009 aged just 29, Safin still boasted a storied career and was immensely popular as a player twice voted the ATP Fan Favorite. The men’s tour described him as a “must-watch player” and many felt he could have achieved more given his natural genius. For this and other facets of his personality, Safin is perhaps most comparable to modern day star Nick Kyrgios as his generation’s most eye-catching on-court presence but with a hint of nonchalance and accusations of underachievement – although unlike the Aussie, Safin does have Grand Slam success to his name. As with Kyrgios, Safin was known for often smashing his racquet – destroying a total 1,055 of them, according to his sponsor who kept count. 

In one of his last stands, at the 2008 Cincinnati Masters, Safin was booed various times by the crowd after throwing his racket and rowing with the match official. He still managed to end his career on good terms at the Paris Masters, though, where he was given the Bercy key after crashing out in the second round to Juan Martin Del Potro in November the following year. In an emotional farewell, Safin said: “Today I will put all my memories, all my wins and losses in a small box. Today a door is closed, hopefully another one will open.” Post-career life  Another door did open, and it happened to be in politics around two years later as Safin was elected to the Russian State Duma as a member of the United Russia Party. It was not to be a long-term career choice, however, and Safin stepped down from his role representing Nizhny Novgorod in May 2017. “I was young and unexperienced. They talked me into it,” he later claimed. “‘Polite’ and ‘likeable’ people. But I don’t regret it. I practiced and used my law degree, I have learned a lot. I got much more experience and finally, more importantly, six long years in the top politics on the federal level in such a huge country like Russia is an amazing achievement, and a very serious lesson.”

Safin pictured at an Australian Open ceremony in 2020.

©  Quinn Rooney / Getty Images

Safin, whose sister Dinara also enjoyed a successful professional career and reached three Grand Slam finals, went on to become an official for the Russian Tennis Federation and a member of Russia’s Olympic Committee. He stayed connected to the sport through coaching a Russia ‘Dream Team’ featuring Medvedev and Khachanov while attempting to recapture his Davis Cup glories after becoming the first Russian tennis player inducted into the sport’s Hall of Fame in 2016. “We had ups and downs, we cried, we broke rackets, we shouted some words, we threw the balls out of the court, we insulted the referees, only sometimes,” Safin said at his induction with laughter. “But this is a part of our life. I’m just so pleased to be part of it. It’s a huge honor to be inducted and be part of history.”

Safin pictured at the ATP Cup in 2020 alongside current Russian tennis stars Daniil Medvedev and Karen Khachanov.

©  Paul Kane / Getty Images

Making headlines for his views on Covid-19 during the pandemic, Safin has been out of the spotlight of late until his recent viral resurgence due to the photo circulating on Twitter from the Australian Open in 2002. That image did not even feature Safin himself, but rather the collection of fetching blonde women in his player’s box known as the “Safinettes” and boasted two Moscow models. Current Australian tennis star Thanasi Kokkinakis even described Safin as the GOAT – greatest of all time – for the eye-catching team he had managed to assemble. Safin is said to have had no fewer than eight women in his player’s box during his run to the final in Melbourne, with a tour insider saying that the Russian “never has difficulty finding female supporters”. “His little black book would be pretty impressive,” the source added to Herald Sun.

Members of Safin’s entourage at the 2002 Australian Open.

©  Fairfax Media via Getty Images

The Melbourne daily newspaper wasn’t the only outlet to pick up on the Safinettes’ presence, as Channel 7 focused on them during Safin’s matches and on-court interviews. “I have to say thank you to all my family sitting over there,” he said to laughter on Center Court at the Rod Laver arena, while gesturing towards the ‘harem’, as the media dubbed them. Safin, who celebrated turning 43 on Friday, described Australia as a place that “stays in my heart.” “I have great memories from Australia. I played well and happy there,” he recalled.

👑 Former World No.1🏆 2000 US Open champion🏆 2005 Australian Open champion🏆🏆 2-time Davis Cup winnerHappy Birthday Marat Safin 🥳#HappyBirthday #MaratSafin #Tennis pic.twitter.com/o1DygcGRYz— Sportskeeda Tennis (@SK__Tennis) January 27, 2023

It perhaps seems unfathomable that a player on the current ATP tour could pull off such a stunt. Yet that was Safin – a unique entertainer full of charisma from a bygone era, but still remembered warmly and with many of his impressive records still intact. 

[ukdamo]

Preston North End

George Szirtes

Tottenham Hotspur versus Preston North End. Finney’s last season: my first. And my dad with me. How surprisingly well we blend

with these others. Then the English had the advantage, but today we feel their fury, sadness and pity. There were some bad

years in between, a lot of down-at-heel meandering. For me though, the deep blue of Preston was ravishment of a more genteel,

poetic kind. They were thrashed five-one, it’s true, and Finney was crocked by Mackay. Preston went down, hardly to rise again. But something got through

about Finney the plumber, Lancashire, the Crown, and those new days a-coming. The crowd dissolves, but we are of the crowd, heading into town

under sodium street lights. This year Wolves will win the title. Then Burnley. I will see Charlton, Law and George Best. The world revolves

around them and those voices on TV reading the results. I’m being bedded in – to what kind of soil remains a mystery,

but I sense it in my marrow like a thin drift of salt blown off the strand. I am an Englishman, wanting England to win.

I pass the Tebbitt test. I am Alan Lamb, Greg Rusedski, Viv Anderson, the boy from the corner shop, Solskjaer and Jaap Stam.

I feel no sense of distance when the tannoy plays Jerusalem, Rule Britannia or the National Anthem. I know King Priam. I have lived in Troy.

I always had a love of football - my father took me to my first football match in Budapest when I was a child, and he took me to my first English football match when we came to England. 'Preston North End' the poem describes the first match I ever went to which was Spurs versus Preston North End. It's a poem about belonging, about belonging in a crowd, about belonging to a nation, about belonging to a nation with a specific history to which you may become attached in some way, of which you may become a part.

[qudachuk]

Rusedski partnered Jamie Murray to a crucial doubles win over Robin Haase and Rogier Wassen.

[stan-the-man-4ever]

Andy Murray's comment on this post. Gold 😂

[stateofsport211]

🎥 Wimbledon via SpoTV Indonesia

And now before I get to share the other hot shots coming from Men's Wheelchair Doubles semi that I am watching as I speak, dumping another meme here.

Not Zimonjic rofl-ing when he accidentally hit the line judge (for the nth time) and then she gave the thumbs up because "I'm okay" she felt!

At the end of this match, Nenad Zimonjic/Martina Hingis won, 6-3, 6-4. Next, I'll share stuffs from the Men's Wheelchair Doubles match I'm watching!

[youreamonocoque]

...There's no Tim... WE'RE RIOTING

[dynniksby3c4t]

Greg Rusedski Wife Photo Info and life details Tennis Player

Greg Rusedski Wife Photo Info and life details Tennis Player

Greg Rusedski Wife

Is he married?

About Greg Rusedski :

About

English tennis player and backer for foundations and kids.

Prior to Fame

He won the BBC Personality of the Year Award.

Random data

He is the British Canadian previous genius tennis player whose record for quickest serve at 149 mph was broken just by Andy Roddick.

Family Life

He wedded Lucy Connor in 1999. He has two kids named John…

[royalsports]

Andy Murray’s Queen’s Club comeback halted by defeat to Matteo Berrettini

 Andy Murray’s Queen’s Club comeback become ended withinside the 2nd spherical via way of means of the pinnacle seed Matteo Berrettini on the Cinch Championships. Murray, who received his first singles in shape on grass in 3 years on Tuesday, become overpowered 6-three, 6-three via way of means of the sector No 9.

Berrettini, a former US Open semi-finalist, become usually going to be a more difficult proposition than Murray’s first-spherical opponent, the lacklustre Frenchman Benoît Paire. The former international No 1’s motion did now no longer appear to be impaired via way of means of his current groin problem, the ultra-modern in an extended line of damage setbacks.

But the 6ft 4in Italian Berrettini, with one name beneathneath his belt this season, often boomed down serves of 140mph and secured a spoil for three-2 while Murray wafted a forehand long. Murray confronted  set factors on his personal serve and surrendered the second one while he dumped a forehand low into the net.

The 34-year-antique had a danger to claw lower back an early spoil withinside the 2nd however become not able to take gain as Berrettini moved three-zero ahead. Murray’s bid to attain a 7th Queen’s Club quarter-very last, and the primary seeing that he received the name in 2016, ended while Berrettini ruthlessly held to love.

So there could be no England v Scotland appetiser earlier than the soccer on Friday, with Berrettini taking over the British No 1, Dan Evans, instead. Evans reached his first Queen’s quarter-very last with a 6-4, 7-6 (7) victory towards the Frenchman Adrian Mannarino. In doing so he joined Cameron Norrie and Jack Draper withinside the quarter-finals, that means 3 British gamers have reached the final 8 at Queen’s Club for the primary time withinside the Open era. It is likewise the primary time 3 Britons have reached the quarter-finals of an ATP Tour occasion seeing that Nottingham in 1996, while Tim Henman, Greg Rusedski and Mark Petchey were given through.

Dan Evans took the primary 8 factors of his in shape towards Adrian Mannarino.

Evans appeared in for an clean afternoon while he took the primary 8 factors of the in shape however Mannarino, the sector No 42, proved a intricate purchaser as soon as he settled. Evans wanted a similarly spoil to take the primary set and stored a hard and fast factor withinside the 2nd earlier than triumphing a carefully fought tie-spoil.

Evans said: “It become a difficult in shape mentally greater than anything, to try to preserve on and preserve my nerve on the cease as well, I become down set factor. I did a very good activity of gambling my gameand got here up with a few desirable serves after I wanted them.”

[cdntennis]

Open 13 2020 (Marseille, France)

Canada’s Félix Auger-Aliassime defeated Gilles Simon in two sets of 7-5, 7-6(2) to advance to the final of the ATP 250 in Marseille, his second straight ATP final (lost last week in Rotterdam) and the 5th of his career. At only 19-year-old, Auger-Aliassime is already in the second place on the list of Canadians with the most ATP singles finals, surpassing the 4 of Canadian turned British Greg Rusedski and only behind the 22 of Milos Raonic.

(Picture : © Coco Dubreuil/Open 13)

[mainswinning]

Free online trivial pursuit

#Free online trivial pursuit series#

What was the best-selling novel of the 19th century?.Which Jules Verne novel was inspired by a book written by British geologist, Charles Lyell, in 1863?.What title is shared by an oil painting by Johannes Vermeer and a 2003 romantic drama directed by Peter Webber?.Who is by far the most famous creation of Michael Bond?.The Walker Art Gallery can be visited in which city?.Trivial Pursuit Brown - Arts & Literature In which 1940 satirical film did Charlie Chaplin impersonate Hitler?.Which band consists of three brothers and a cousin, all with the last name Followill?.Who is famous for the role of Professor Sprout in the Harry Potter film series?.Which principal artist of the Imperial Russian Ballet is most recognized for the creation of the role The Dying Swan?.Which character in TV's Only Fools and Horses, wore a Trilby hat and was always boasting about some imagined business success?.Gordon Gekko is a fictional character in which 1987 film?.In 1990, which soap actor reached number 2 in the UK Charts with the song 'Mona'?.

#Free online trivial pursuit series#

Who starred as Lady Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham in the series Downton Abbey?.

Sharon Stone was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in which 1995 film?.

Who won the Eurovision Song Contest for the United Kingdom in 1997 with the song 'Love Shine a Light'?.

4 inches (to be exact, 4 and a 1/4 inches).

Who won two gold medals for Great Britain in the 2008 Summer Paralympics despite being only 13?.

The athelete Frankie Fredericks represented which African country?.

To the nearest inch, what is the diameter of a golf hole?.

Which European city hosted the 1928 Summer Olympic Games?.

In horse racing, how many individual bets are there in a Yankee?.

What word links a ski lift with a round plastic disc at the end of a long pole and a former Formula One World Champion?.

In 1930, which country won the first football World Cup?.

The Borg-Warner Trophy, introduced in 1936, is awarded to the winner of which race?.

How many hurdles must be cleared in 110m hurdles?.

What nationality was Greg Rusedski before he became a British tennis star?.

Trivial Pursuit Orange - Sports & Leisure

Hessian refers to a style of which sort of clothing that became popular from the beginning of the 19th century?.

Name the last imperial dynasty of China?.

In 1534, Jacques Cartier claims what part of Canada for France?.

The Black Death killed around a third of the population of Europe in which century?.

Who was born on the 14th of March 1879, in Ulm, Germany?.

What was the codename for the Dunkirk evacuations in 1940?.

How is Martha Canary, who died in 1903, better known?.

Which battle fought on 6 July 1685, took place near Bridgwater in Somerset?.

Spanish Town was the capital of which island from 1534 until 1872?.

Which King's defeat ended the War of the Roses?.

The Bank of England's headquarters have been on which London street, since 1734?.

Which Canadian city is the largest in the province of Alberta?.

A person nicknamed a yellowhammer would be from which American state?.

Name the world's most populated island?.

Which hills boast the source of the Thames?.

Which geological period was named after the English county where rocks from this period were first studied?.

The Hindu Kush is a mountain range that stretches near the border of which two countries?.

The national flag of Cuba consists of how many alternating stripes?.

Which Australian city was established in 1835 at the lower stretches of the Yarra River?.

How many hills is Sheffield said to be built on?.

It was released in 1981, with the game's popularity peaking in the mid 1980s. Trivial Pursuit was created in December 1979, in Montreal, Canada, by Chris Haney and Scott Abbott after finding pieces of their Scrabble game missing. We've listed some typical Trivial Pursuit questions in the same categories as the traditional board game.

[sa7abnews]

The Russian ‘bad boy’ who brought tennis glory to his country

New Post has been published on https://sa7ab.info/2024/08/13/the-russian-bad-boy-who-brought-tennis-glory-to-his-country/

The Russian ‘bad boy’ who brought tennis glory to his country

With the 2023 Australian Open nearing its conclusion, we look back at a charismatic Russian former winner of the event

The Australian Open runs to its conclusion this weekend, with the first Grand Slam of 2023 set to be bookended on Sunday when the men’s championship match is played between record nine-time winner Novak Djokovic and debut finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas. With the exit of Karen Khachanov in the semifinals at the hands of Tsitsipas, Russia is again left ruing a missed opportunity for glory in Melbourne after Daniil Medvedev was beaten in successive finals in the past two editions of the tournament. Indeed, it is fast approaching two decades since the last Russian man won the title Down Under. On that occasion it was Marat Safin, one of the most charismatic, combustible characters of his or any other generation of tennis talent. The second Russian to win the Australian Open after Yevgeny Kafelnikov in 1999, Safin struck gold in 2005 in Melbourne by coming back to beat local favorite Lleyton Hewitt in what was his last great individual triumph. Despite retiring prematurely in 2009, Safin is far from forgotten in the tennis world – as evidenced by a viral throwback photo from 2002 which circulated during the current edition of the Australian Open, and which featured the eye-catching female following in Safin’s box during his playing days. A playboy once described as a “two-meter embodiment of women’s dreams” by compatriot Dmitry Tursunov, Safin was often admired for his “frankness, outrageousness and charm” – married with no shortage of talent on the tennis court. The Australian Open was a tournament that Safin graced with all of those attributes, reaching the final three times. The re-emergence of the famous photo from 2002, where he allegedly partied before being beaten by underdog Thomas Johansson in the final, has led to many recalling one of the most colorful characters to have played the game.

Marat Safin's box in 2002 Australian Open, where he lost in the final to Thomas Johansson 😄 pic.twitter.com/B6m4bOghok— Luigi Gatto (@gigicat7_) January 13, 2023

Rise to the top   Born in Moscow to Tatar Muslim parents, Safin showed early promise as a tennis prodigy and moved to Valencia in Spain as a 14-year-old to access advanced tennis training programs. As a teenager who – in his own words – grew “very fast … with no muscles,” Safin felt that Spain’s clay courts would be better for his knees. The surface was arguably better for his overall career progression and development. After turning professional in 1997, he took the scalps of Andre Agassi and reigning champion Gustavo Kuerten at the 1998 French Open, before being eliminated in the fourth round by two-time Grand Slam finalist Cedric Pioline. Agassi pulled one back against Safin by beating him in the final of the Paris Masters in November 1999, but Safin had already tasted triumph by pipping Brit Greg Rusedski in an ATP final in Boston in August. Turning 20 on January 27, 2000, the new millennium ushered in Safin’s most successful year in which he set records that remain intact to this day. He won a Masters tournament in Canada, then beat four-time champion and 90s great Pete Sampras in straight sets at Flushing Meadows to become the third youngest winner of the US Open aged just 20 years and 228 days. 

A fresh-faced Safin won a stunning victory at Flushing Meadows in 2000.

©  Jon Buckle / EMPICS via Getty Images

Safin’s maiden Grand Slam title also saw him become the first Russian to win the title in New York – and it was a full 21 years until Daniil Medvedev became the second to do so by beating Novak Djokovic in the 2021 final. The youngest Russian winner of any major tournament, Safin went on to become the youngest player of the Open Era at the time to reach the world number one ranking with his number of titles (seven) the most on the ATP Tour that year.  “For me it was very strange in my experience reaching number one. I wasn’t ready for that because I couldn’t imagine just a few months earlier that I’d have the chance to become number in the world. I was Top 50, dropping, playing very badly,” Safin later confessed to ATPTour.com. “I underestimated myself… I didn’t believe in myself, and I was seeing myself weaker than others, which is unbelievable. Now I can understand tennis better.”

What a year 2000 was for Marat Safin…🔹 US Open champion🔹 ATP Finals semifinalist 🔹 Seven singles titlesOn this day 21-years-ago, the Russian reached the 🔝 of the ATP rankings for the first time in his career! pic.twitter.com/MgaqLwMpYd— US Open Tennis (@usopen) November 20, 2021

The fire and the fury  By now, Safin was building a reputation as a fiery personality who brought everything to the court and who would often take out his frustrations on his racket. Not only boasting generational talent, he had the heart to battle through adversity and was a must-see draw for the crowds, whether on fire at his unbeatable best or out of sorts due to his temperament. In the Paris Masters final of 2000 against Mark Philippoussis, for example, Safin became bloodied from diving for a volley and beat the Aussie with a bandage over his right eyebrow through five sets and a tiebreak.  While 2001 proved relatively quiet, save for two ATP finals victories in Uzbekistan and St. Petersburg, Safin reached his first Australian Open final in 2002 but was upset by Thomas Johansson – turning heads with the aforementioned entourage in his box along the way. Some years later, another controversial character in Daniel Kollerer claimed to have seen Safin partying and drinking before the match played in the run-up to his 22nd birthday.  “He [was] so drunk he can’t even walk on his two feet, it can not be that bad,” reminisced the German to Unbreakable Media while talking about his own descent into a hedonistic lifestyle. “He could never win because he was so drunk, unbelievable. He was celebrating the night before like it was his birthday party. He celebrated like he already won the Australian Open.”

Safin was often portrayed as something of a party boy.

©  Fairfax Media via Getty Images via Getty Images

Safin’s first French Open semifinal ended in disappointment too, and he also fell short of regaining his world number one spot. But he ended the year well by beating the holder of the spot, Hewitt, to clinch the Paris Masters again and by leading Russia to its maiden Davis Cup title in December.  A string of injuries blighted Safin’s 2003, as they did for much of the remainder of his career. Yet he returned to the Australian Open in fine form in early 2004 by topping number one seed Andy Roddick in the quarterfinals and Andre Agassi in the semi-finals, ending the American legend’s 26-match winning streak at the tournament. Those five-set affairs drained Safin, however, and rising star Roger Federer blew him away in straight sets in the final to become world number one for the first time in his career.  That year was another which started with disappointment but ended well for Safin. Losing his head at the French Open and receiving a $500 fine for “racquet abuse” but strangely not for dropping his pants, he blasted “all the people who runs the sport” in a memorable interview.

“They have no clue!” said Safin ranted. “It’s a pity that tennis is really going down the drain… They do everything that is possible just to take away the entertainment. You’re not allowed to do that; you’re not allowed to do this. You’re not allowed to speak whenever you want to speak…” Later, though, he claimed a third Paris Masters crown and became the first man to win the final two Masters of the calendar in the same year by sealing victory in Madrid.   Success Down Under and early retirement  In 2005, Safin got off to the best possible start by reaching his third Australian Open final in four years – and this time finishing the job. In the semifinals, he got his revenge over Federer by winning a five-set thriller, then swatting away Hewitt in the final in four sets after going one down. 

Safin tasted Grand Slam success for the second time in Australia in 2005.

©  Fairfax Media via Getty Images via Getty Images

Sadly, injuries would keep Safin off the court for the rest of the season. Save for winning the Davis Cup with Russia for a second time in 2006, Safin was often perceived as something of a spent force at the top level, except for becoming the first Russian to reach the semifinals at Wimbledon, where Federer beat him, even though Safin harbored an open disdain for grass.  Despite retiring prematurely in late 2009 aged just 29, Safin still boasted a storied career and was immensely popular as a player twice voted the ATP Fan Favorite. The men’s tour described him as a “must-watch player” and many felt he could have achieved more given his natural genius. For this and other facets of his personality, Safin is perhaps most comparable to modern day star Nick Kyrgios as his generation’s most eye-catching on-court presence but with a hint of nonchalance and accusations of underachievement – although unlike the Aussie, Safin does have Grand Slam success to his name. As with Kyrgios, Safin was known for often smashing his racquet – destroying a total 1,055 of them, according to his sponsor who kept count. 

In one of his last stands, at the 2008 Cincinnati Masters, Safin was booed various times by the crowd after throwing his racket and rowing with the match official. He still managed to end his career on good terms at the Paris Masters, though, where he was given the Bercy key after crashing out in the second round to Juan Martin Del Potro in November the following year. In an emotional farewell, Safin said: “Today I will put all my memories, all my wins and losses in a small box. Today a door is closed, hopefully another one will open.” Post-career life  Another door did open, and it happened to be in politics around two years later as Safin was elected to the Russian State Duma as a member of the United Russia Party. It was not to be a long-term career choice, however, and Safin stepped down from his role representing Nizhny Novgorod in May 2017. “I was young and unexperienced. They talked me into it,” he later claimed. “‘Polite’ and ‘likeable’ people. But I don’t regret it. I practiced and used my law degree, I have learned a lot. I got much more experience and finally, more importantly, six long years in the top politics on the federal level in such a huge country like Russia is an amazing achievement, and a very serious lesson.”

Safin pictured at an Australian Open ceremony in 2020.

©  Quinn Rooney / Getty Images

Safin, whose sister Dinara also enjoyed a successful professional career and reached three Grand Slam finals, went on to become an official for the Russian Tennis Federation and a member of Russia’s Olympic Committee. He stayed connected to the sport through coaching a Russia ‘Dream Team’ featuring Medvedev and Khachanov while attempting to recapture his Davis Cup glories after becoming the first Russian tennis player inducted into the sport’s Hall of Fame in 2016. “We had ups and downs, we cried, we broke rackets, we shouted some words, we threw the balls out of the court, we insulted the referees, only sometimes,” Safin said at his induction with laughter. “But this is a part of our life. I’m just so pleased to be part of it. It’s a huge honor to be inducted and be part of history.”

Safin pictured at the ATP Cup in 2020 alongside current Russian tennis stars Daniil Medvedev and Karen Khachanov.

©  Paul Kane / Getty Images

Making headlines for his views on Covid-19 during the pandemic, Safin has been out of the spotlight of late until his recent viral resurgence due to the photo circulating on Twitter from the Australian Open in 2002. That image did not even feature Safin himself, but rather the collection of fetching blonde women in his player’s box known as the “Safinettes” and boasted two Moscow models. Current Australian tennis star Thanasi Kokkinakis even described Safin as the GOAT – greatest of all time – for the eye-catching team he had managed to assemble. Safin is said to have had no fewer than eight women in his player’s box during his run to the final in Melbourne, with a tour insider saying that the Russian “never has difficulty finding female supporters”. “His little black book would be pretty impressive,” the source added to Herald Sun.

Members of Safin’s entourage at the 2002 Australian Open.

©  Fairfax Media via Getty Images

The Melbourne daily newspaper wasn’t the only outlet to pick up on the Safinettes’ presence, as Channel 7 focused on them during Safin’s matches and on-court interviews. “I have to say thank you to all my family sitting over there,” he said to laughter on Center Court at the Rod Laver arena, while gesturing towards the ‘harem’, as the media dubbed them. Safin, who celebrated turning 43 on Friday, described Australia as a place that “stays in my heart.” “I have great memories from Australia. I played well and happy there,” he recalled.

👑 Former World No.1🏆 2000 US Open champion🏆 2005 Australian Open champion🏆🏆 2-time Davis Cup winnerHappy Birthday Marat Safin 🥳#HappyBirthday #MaratSafin #Tennis pic.twitter.com/o1DygcGRYz— Sportskeeda Tennis (@SK__Tennis) January 27, 2023

It perhaps seems unfathomable that a player on the current ATP tour could pull off such a stunt. Yet that was Safin – a unique entertainer full of charisma from a bygone era, but still remembered warmly and with many of his impressive records still intact. 

[bundleislife-blog]

It's about you. If you win, it's you; if you lose, it's you. Black and white. Nowhere to hide.

-Greg Rusedski

[oliveroo234]

Se trata de ti. Si ganas, eres tú; si pierdes, eres tú. En blanco y negro. Ningún lugar para esconderse». Greg Rusedski (en Aguascalientes, Mexico) https://www.instagram.com/p/CcW2qcOM5Qf/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[updatesnews]

Greg Rusedski recalls 'frightening' Rafa Nadal moment - 'Never seen anything like it' | Tennis | Sport

Greg Rusedski recalls ‘frightening’ Rafa Nadal moment – ‘Never seen anything like it’ | Tennis | Sport

Former British tennis ace Greg Rusedski has recalled the ‘frightening’ moment he first watched a 15-year-old Rafael Nadal play, admitting he’d ‘never seen anything like it’. Nadal made tennis history on Sunday as he collected a record 21st Grand Slam title with victory over Daniil Medvedev at the Australian Open final in Melbourne. The Spaniard put in one of the great Grand Slam final…

[stateofsport211]

🎥 Wimbledon via SpoTV Indonesia

This one was something else. Rather than badminton, my mind went disoriented and thought "did we do ping-pong?"

Memes aside, there is also a reason why I love such net exchanges, considering the net game being an aspect to the game. We need to anticipate more with our shot choices, to be a little bit more precise for the ball to be "put in." Just look at that.