Marat Safin slumped to 1-5 for the year with a loss to Bobby Reynolds.

"I'm trying, and it doesn't come out my way," said Safin, who was beaten 7-6 (7-3) 4-6 7-6 (7-5) by the American qualifier.

"But (that) doesn't mean that I have to stop because I'm not winning matches. I enjoy what I'm doing. I have plenty of cash to do what I want to do, so what I want to do is play tennis."

Another loss for our favourite maverick.What happens now?These slumps can go on for seasons,let alone a few tournies.I would love to see Safin scale some more heights,but I fear the worst,as this has been a gradual decay ever since he came back from his knee problem.

It's really unfortunate because at his best he is a match for the top guys out there easily. But if you can only produce your best for small portions of your career, you aren't actually good enough to be up there with the best.

Perhaps he could make an Agassi style career comeback...you never know in this world. But to be honest, I think we have seen the best of Mr. Safin. :( :(

SONY ERICSSON OPEN
Miami, Florida, U.S.A. March 28, 2008
Reynolds Edges Past Safin; Russian's Slump Continues
© Getty Images
American qualifier Bobby Reynolds (pictured) knocked out former World No. 1 Marat Safin 7-6(3), 4-6, 7-6(5) Thursday for a place in the Sony Ericsson Open second round against another Russian, No. 11 seed Mikhail Youzhny.

World No. 104 Reynolds was unable to convert one match point on the Safin serve at 5-4 in the third set and fought back from a 3-1 deficit in the deciding tie-break with four consecutive points. The 25-year-old Georgia resident held his nerve and clinched victory in two hours and 17 minutes.

"I feel like I served really well," said Reynolds, after snapping a four-match losing streak. "[I] gave myself a lot of opportunities with break points. I kept fighting and I think that's the biggest attribute to my game is I never give up. Just keep fighting."

Safin, who reached the 2002 Miami quarterfinals (l. to Hewitt), saved nine of 10 break point opportunities but could only win 27 per cent of points on return of serve. The 28-year-old struck 19 aces – a feat matched by Reynolds – but drops to 1-5 record on the season. His last win came at the Australian Open in January, when he lost to Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus in the second round.

"I enjoy what I'm doing," said Safin. "So it's not the subject of if I'm not winning any matches I have to retire straightaway. I can still travel and enjoy it, and if the good days will come, they will come. If not, I will stop anyway."


This is the version from ATP tennis.Safin just has gone mentally much like our other favourite South -Americans,Coria&Gaudio.

I can't see a comeback,and it looks like he's talking himself out of finding the inner resolve needed.Gaudio said as much recently,although Coria was more determined,but once you fall from the summit of mens tennis,it's almost certain that it can't be reached again.This is the beauty and the cruelty of tennis.

Wonders why dinky isn't here to defend her idol. :thinking:

It's bene on the cards for years, and let's face ti, when he didn't have the injury or age excuses he still had problems with his consitency. No disrepsect to him, but I do feel that he has too casual an attitude and the wrong type of mentality. He often starts a tournei lookign great then f8cks up when he shouldn't. You never know he might pull a Goran one day, he is that kind of player, but the difference I feel is that Goran wanted it more and was prepared to almost die in the process. I never feel Safin has that level of committment. He might say he enjoys it and doesn't need the money, but if his ranking dips he's nto going to get the chance to play the big ones so he eneeds to wake up really.

DinkyJo is watching the cycling in Manchester, so she might not have internet access.

Thing with Safin is, he's primarily a confidence player. Very rarely can he summon his best tennis from nothing and go on to win big. That's why one loss can spiral into chronic losses and it's hard for him to break the spell :(

In an indeal world with Safin playing well he'd be number 2 without a shadow of a doubt. His talent when it's on far surpasses Nadal, Djokovic, Nalbandian and he comes pretty close to Federer too. It's just such a frustrating scene though to watch Safin slump out of tournament after tournament. He's so much better than that.

The good thing is he still sounds very positive about continuing his career and trying to reclaim his best form. A very key part of the season for him will be the US harcourt season. It'll be pivotal mark my words.

thanks for the update Nevets. Hope Marat can find his form again.

any player, and certainly one of Safin's stature, knows that you must go out believing you can and will win your match. i don't really believe Safin practices that addage at all. disappointing really...

yeah, I agree with that - as dl says, he tends to be a confidence player I think, and with the wins not coming, he doesnt go out with belief and is going out so early, he is unlikely to find his confidence and form again.

A huge shame - I love watching Safin, a character good for the game.

I do hope he continues and a surprise win gives him a boost - but can only watch this space.

if he's committed to playing - that is a good thing. i prefer for him to hang around then go away.

definitely :ok:

That's a bold statement. For me, Marat has never done anything in his career to suggest his talent far surpasses that of Nadal on any surface other than Hard Court. On that surface I'd agree with you, but we have a clay court season and, although it is only a couple of tournaments, a grass court season in which he has never proven to be a talent like Rafa.

Yes i agree he's more limited on clay than Rafa, but at his best he can still move very well on the stuff, and has that thunderous shot-making ability. He grew up on clay and knows the intricacies of it well :)

Safin actually in theory has a great game for grass. It gives him free points on serve and the ability to hit winners and end the points early which Safin thrives on. Shame he has zero belief on there though :shrug:

I have always thought his game was built for grass but Safin himself admits he struggles.

From this article here from way back in 2001...

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/tennis/...ass-675407.html


....he admits, "Actually, I know how to play on grass, but I cannot do it."

He suggests that back then it was the bounce he struggled with.

Wasn't it him that once said "Grass is for cows" after he got knocked out early at Wimbledon?

Which is EXACTLY why I have never been one to big him up, because if you can't make the best of that kind fo opportunity, then what kind fo player are you really? As I said, he doesn't have the mentality and committment needed to play at the top level. And to be honest, it has gone on so long now that I have lost much interest. The only way he can redeem himself for me is to do a Goran. And strangley, or mayeb predictably, his sister seems to be cursed with a similar problem as well because she should be appearing in the latter stages of GS s regularly IMO. She's just not got the consistency though.

Lendl said that :D

I'm sorry Gav,but I have to agree with dl,because really out of the players he mentioned only Nalbandian comes close to the naturalness of swing.Safin has so much talent as a ball striker,for me exceptionally close to Federer.He really can play every shot.

Back in late 04 to the early part of 05 he was simply playing out of his mind.Even today with the growing competition he should be a permenent resident in the Top4.

Problem is he hasn't the right mind for it.It's one of those intangibles in a persons mental make-up which really can't be learned,it's just there.

Most players have an imbalance of talent and mental aptitude,even great ones,but I suppose Federer is actually the closest I've seen to possessing both almost to perfection.

Also on the argument of surfaces,I would say a mentally present Safin would be a favourite along with the usual suspects for any hardcourt or indoor event.

Grass is all in his head,because he obviously has the movement and the game for all court tennis to succeed on it.

Clay well i'm not sure he is a grinder,but he's good enough for the second week,based on his ability to hit.
He's a flatter hitter like Agassi,but Andre had a decent career on clay by controlling the centre of the court and taking the ball on the rise,something that Safin would be capable of on clay with his height,especially on his backhand where gets a very tall posture when striking the ball.

Again all conjecture really,because he will never have the steel in the mind.

I supposed ity comes down to what we define as talent.

While I'd agree Safin's swing and ball hitting is excellent that talent itself has only proved that it works for him on hardcourts, and I'd agree at his best he is by far more talented than players such as Nadal and Djoko on those courts.

Switch to clay courts however and Nadal's talent for ball hitting and that grip he uses shows, for me anyway, that his talent for the clay court game far surpasses that of Safin that he has ever shown on that type of court.

I'd also stick my neck out and say that the way Nadal has adapted his game for SW19 the last two years, and that can be seen especially so in his final with Roger last year, that his talent for hitting a ball on grass is better than Safin's as well, no matter what Safin's potential ability on grass could be.

No I would not agree with that either. The way nadal strikes the ball on clay is not that unique. I think all players can do it but unlike Nadal they will tire quicker and above all they never learnt to play like that so they are going to be at a disadvantage sooner or later. This is the difference with a clean ball stricker a la McEnroe or Safin is that not many people can hit the ball as cleanly. Even on clay, Nadal only dictates versus Federer and the rest when those two guys get tired but before that, he does most of the running. Federer, quite early on has the advantage on clay....until his loses his edge due to tiredness or the confidence dropping but that is not that much down to Nadal's strokes as to the very nature of clay which requires clean strikers to deliver for a long period. I maintain that Nadal's talent on clay was essentially his stamina and pace on the court. And for that reason, I much doubt he will get the same success this year as the previous years. I also think that dhbh players like Djoko and Nalby could really expose his game on clay this year.

I do agree with most to a large extent.... But therein lies Safin's Conundrum. The talent is there and you think he should be good on a surface...but what is talent if it is never proven;... be it on grass or clay. Agree Tenez, a large part of Nadal's game on clear was his motivation or drive. Other players have come close to stopping him on clay but he always outlasted them. But, he does use his clay court sense pretty well.

Much the same for FED and his consistency...you need those two to be a clear number one. What is talent without motivation.... :doh: . It is good that Marat still loves the game ...but love just won't cut it anymore ..you need the hunger to grind out those wins sometimes. I'm very sure Safin is aware of this.. and its probably only Safin who can convince Safin to do what needs to be done... it's all in the head right now...

Safin at his best could play amazingly but I disagree that ideally he should be number 2. I believe it is better for a player to consistently play well without having too many dips in their form even if their best isn't amazing tennis than it is to have a player who can play amazingly but is so variable. In my opinion the former is the one with the greater talent.

Good question. If success is the measuring stick then, it doesn't equate to much unfortunately. But For Marat, i think his talent gave him a good life so far, comfort, money, a job he likes and success to some extend as well. Just us the fans seem disappointed but I will always value the player for who he is and even for what he achieved. He brought the level of tennis to new heigths when he played versus Federer and Sampras. I the end of the day, he got the compromise he wanted beween hard work and success. That's more than many can dream of. 2GSs is not that bad after all and I think his large frame was always going to be a handicap in this physically demanding tour.

I'm no clay expert but wouldtend to agree Tenez. Physicality and stamina are a major advantage on clay, and those are Nadal's talents on that surface. I don't see any especially amazing shots or strategies from Nadal, to me it's about the speed to run down every ball and the ability to outlast his opponent. However, Nadal obviously has strong mentality as well.

That's for sure SB. This is why he inspires so many fans.

And can surely be described as oneof his talents, as well as his stamina and strength. And his grip and the topspin he gets on clay, on his forehand, is pretty unique in my opinion.

Yep. :ok: I know it's impossible to quantify but I wonder how much of his success depends on mentality alone? Given hsi hard court GS results I'd say not as much a some think. Without the phsyicality I doubt his mental toughness alone will carry him through in the same way it did with say Hewitt. But it will certainly be a bonus, and to credi tNadal there are a lot of players who coudl learn form him in the mentality dept.

I agree. I think a lot of people tend to point to their favourite when they lose saying "They didn't play at their best. Had they done so it would they would have one."... That doesn't cut it for me. If you lose you lose.... playing at a great level consistently (ala Fed, Nadal) is always, in my opinion, a greater talent than a peak and trough player (Nalby, Safin).

Well I guess it serves you better as a career thing. Consistency itself is a talent. I assume when we talk about these guys who can play better than the top players on a good day but can't keep the level up, we are talking more about shotmaking and instinct, having a wow factor? There are some very consitent players who are never spectacular and don't show that kind of 'talent'. It's hard to measure and determine what is an disn't talent, and wht kind fo talent is best.

:ok:

I have to say i wasn't particularly surprised to see that Marat had lost, although i was exceptionally annoyed! His brain just isn't there at the moment, he's lost all confidence and with every loss he loses more confidence and it becomes a vicious circle with the guy. If he is telling the truth and he enjoys playing the tour even when losing then that's great, but it would surprise me a lot if it's true - I'd be surprised if any of the top players actually enjoy losing....

I hope Marat can somehow find a way to get his confidence back - i thought that getting a new coach and having a fairly successful match against Baggy in the AO might give him a bit of a boost but it appears that he's simply gone back to where he was last year :(

Hey Dinky Jo,a win in the Davis Cup,and now beating Juan Carlos in Valencia.

Is Marat discovering the winning formula again?It's a start anyway

:yahoo: :yahoo:

here's hoping :pray: he's up against Haase in the next round, and haase can put in good performances so it could actually be a tough one for Marat. :unsure:

for those who may be interested (that'd be me then :blush: ) marat is playing the qualifiers in Hamburg - having got a WC into the qualifying draw.

And our favourite maverick wins again.I would probably guess that Marat is everyones second favourite player,judging by most of the comments on here. :shrug: