Marat Safin - Raw talent. Review on Marat Safin

He, one of the most delightful players of the present generation, made his mark in what could be hailed as one of the biggest one sided US Open finals in the year 2000.

Pete Sampras, the undisputed king of tennis in the last decade of the millenium, was unfortunately at the receiving end. He was demolished in straight sets by a twenty year old Russian.

Marat Safin, a champion was born. Pete Sampras himself acknowledged that he stood no chance in front of his opponent and that he was virtually blown away.

Safin, a rugged individual, carries himself around with an air of arrogance. He can kill his opponents with his destructive looks. He is a kind of player who can beat any player on his day and at the same time, lose to a wildcard entrant also with the same panache. His unpredictability on court is backed by his highly volatile temper. His temper flares up to such extremes that he may have to carry a dozen racquets for a single match. The linesmen and the chair umpire, of course end up at the receiving end of his verbal vollies.

Safin's charisma on court cannot be matched by many. He has a booming serve that whizzes past his opponents at tremendous pace. He is a good serve and volley player, with good ability to play from the baseline too. His ability to play the groundstrokes at lightning quick speed gives him the advantage of few seconds extra for the next shot.

The kind of talent that Safin possesses, he was expected to accumulate trophies all along. Though easier said than done, he had to face another mercurial player Roger Federer in his quest for fame. He made it to the semi-finals and finals of many grand slams only to end up without scaling the peak. He had to wait for nearly four years for his next title.

The Australian Open 2005 not only proved to be third time lucky for him, but also heralded the arrival of a more mature Safin. It was his win at the semi-finals of the championships that won him accolades. He had to beat the best player of the new breed of talent in an epic match going to five sets. He had to save a match point in the fourth set, with a brilliant lob over Roger Federer, to stay in the match. The fifth set that lasted 80 minutes was nothing short of high quality gripping tennis.

It was an epic of all sorts. Safin had to summon all his reserves that he had gained in the last five years of his professional experience to put it across Federer. It was sheer delight to the packed house in the Rod Laver Arena to see two quality players playing one of the games of their lives.

Federer grew in confidence as the game progressed but Safin matched Federer stroke for stroke. At the end of a marathon 4 hours and 28 minutes, after battling six match points, Safin put it across Federer with a smashing forehand winner to beat the man who looked impossible to be beaten in the last 28 matches.

The final against Lleyton Hewitt started in terrible fashion for Safin, as he made a barrage of unforced and forced errors. All Hewitt had to do was keep the ball in the court. Safin looked sluggish in the first set to end up lose it in 23 minutes with a single game.

A third Australian open final was squandered is what seemed for Safin. The partisan crowd made the task against Hewitt all the more tougher. He slowly dug his way back into the match by breaking Hewitt in the second set and winning it though not convincingly.

The third set started in disastrous style as Safin lost the first three games in a row. He lost his composure and was even warned for abuse as he flung the racquet to the court. It was in the fourth game, that Safin clawed his way back into the game by breaking back Hewitt in style. His ferocious ground strokes found its way back into his book.

His forehand and backhand winners were a treat to watch. He was able to pierce the ever running Hewitt with some outstanding passing shots. He found his booming serves once again, that had threatened to disobey him in the first two sets. The net result resulted in a flawless display of tennis from Safin's racquet. He comfortably raced past Hewitt to win the third set and the next to win the Championship title that had eluded him in the past two years.

The grand slam win was a fitting tribute to the man, who could keep his passion for the game going despite facing a grand slam drought for five years. The maturity in Safin's game is a mark of his perseverance, commitment and the ever growing passion. If he can keep his regular flare-ups in check, we can see Safin winning the battle of supremancy among the four big guns of today's tennis that includes Roger Federer, Andy Roddick and Lleyton Hewitt.

This is certainly a golden period for men's tennis and the next few years is going to be a treat for tennis fans around the world.