| Marat Safin's refusal to defend last year's title of winner of the Australian Open caused a negative reaction even from the captain of the Russian national team, Shamil Tarpishchev, who traditionally protects players. Safin has not been playing tennis for six months due to a knee injury, which seemed to have been successfully operated on and which, according to purely medical logic, should have already healed. But it seems that this is not a matter of medical problems. In this refusal, “pansies” are visible - Marat Safin is increasingly following the path of Anna Kournikova. That is, he becomes not so much an outstanding player as an outstanding socialite, for whom tennis is only his first profession, a springboard for party fame.
Some sports, having completely turned into business, take the next commercial step - they become show business. Marriages of football players with models, advertising contracts of famous athletes, many times greater than the amount of their income from their main activities, no longer surprise anyone. Therefore, the temptation to stop earning money in big sports as quickly as possible, turning from a player into a party character, is very great.
Even the most desperate optimists, who have been waiting for many years for our beauty to finally start winning tournaments, have not remembered Anna Kournikova’s tennis talents for a long time. Marat Safin as a tennis player is undoubtedly much more gifted than Kournikova and has already achieved great victories. At last year's Australian Championship, he not only won the Grand Slam tournament, but also beat Roger Federer himself in the semi-finals of a great match. However, Marat’s external characteristics for the career of a social star are no worse than Anya’s. Moreover, Marat’s character, objectively speaking, is not very sporty. He clearly likes to shine in the world and have fun much more than toil on the court and play in tournaments all year round, the calendar of which is indeed extremely tiring.
It makes no sense to condemn Marat for wanting to become a secular character. In the end, every person is free to earn and spend the money they earn in any way that does not contradict the law. Yes, there is no one more talented than Safin in Russian men's tennis, and what is given to the same Nikolai Davidenko or Igor Andreev with the hardest work, Marat takes playfully, even reluctantly. But the lack of this perseverance has long had a negative impact on Marat’s play. That is why his outstanding victories alternate with catastrophic defeats from players who are frankly inferior to Safin in both skill and ability. That is why each of his matches at any tournament is completely unpredictable and you can never say exactly what form Marat is in now.
Of course, Safin is still too young to say that his tennis career is coming to an end. However, in essence, Marat is already beginning this transition from an active player to a kind of tennis legend. Of course, we, as fans, want tennis victories from him, and not achievements on the love front or a brilliant social career. But in the case of Safin, we have to admit: the temptations of living in the Dolce Vita style are too great, and the desire to play tennis and win tournaments is much weaker.
Moreover, this seemingly easy way of glamorizing athletes is not so safe. In the end, it is sports fame that contributes to their earnings and social fame. The same Anna Kournikova has long lost the unofficial first place in the ranking of the most beautiful and desirable tennis players in the world. And because no less beautiful and desirable ones appeared. And because Anna herself stopped being a tennis player. If you no longer represent anything as an athlete, if you were unable to make a career on television or acquire some kind of “civilian” profession, everyone will soon forget about you. And all that remains is either to get married successfully, or to vegetate in poverty.
So, perhaps, for purely pragmatic reasons, Marat Safin will still make an attempt to declare himself as an outstanding tennis player. At least there are obvious reasons for such an attempt. For example, winning another Grand Slam tournament, if only to earn more money and fame, which can then be converted into entertainment and socialite status. Semyon Novoprudsky
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