Marat Safin's last match, before retirement, was a true reflection of his career - unpredictable. Having wont the first set, by a mile, he promptly lost the next three to make his last Grand slam tournament an extremely forgetful one. Safin's career has been like a roller coaster ride and his ranking over the period of his professional career, stretching from 1997 to 2009, reflects this.
Take a look at this:
Year 1997 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09
Rank 0203 49 23 02 11 03 77 04 12 26 58 29 61
Absolutely sinusoidal. And that takes some achieving!!!
On his given day he could be brilliant. Blessed with a near-perfect physique, the factor that gave his opponents hope was his fickle temperament. While most of us have a split personality, it was more evident in Safin. One just wondered which Safin would turn up on court - the brilliant shot maker or the one bent on harakiri. Often it really did not matter - the self destruct button was never too far away if the brilliant shot maker did show up. Such a weakness would normally mean that the player would not stand a chance in the longer 2-week tournaments. That Safin did win 2 Grand Slam titles, in addition to reaching the championship round in another 2 Grand Slams, speaks volumes of his ability and talent. He also went on to be ranked world number 1 for 9 weeks between November 2000 and April 2001, soon after winning the US Open in 2000, defeating Pete Sampras in the finals. His amazing all-round game ensured that he reached the semi-finals of all the Grand Slams, thereby proving that he had the game to suit all surfaces, once he kept his famous temper in check. His most famous win was his thrilling 5 set win over Roger Federer in the semi-finals of the 2005 Australian Open - a match that ended Federer's 26 match streak over Top-10 players in Grand Slams and a result that must have been sweet revenge for his loss to the same player in the finals of the previous edition. He went on to win his second singles Grand Slam title defeating home favorite Lleyton Hewitt in 4 sets.
Safin's younger sister, Dinara Safina, also a tennis player, emulated her brother, to be the current world number one in the women's ranking and this must be a proud achievement for the Safin family. However, Dinara Safina is yet to win a Grand Slam crown despite reaching 3 finals, of which 2 were in 2009 (the Australian Open and the French Open). Let's hope that Safin's retirement gives him time to support his sister in her quest for Grand Slam glory. Heer's wishing the duo all the best in the future.
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