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Safin bids farewell to Moscow crowd
Published: 23 October, 2009, 12:17
Edited: 23 October, 2009, 18:03
Marat Safin at the players party at the Kremlin Cup (image from www.kremlincup.ru)
Former World No. 1 Marat Safin, who retires at the end of the season, has played his last tennis match in front of the Moscow public, after losing in the second round of the Kremlin Cup.
Safin went down to fellow Russian Evgeny Korolev, who won in straight sets.
After losing the opener 6-4, he led the second set to a tie break, which he wasn’t able to win.
Korolev, who defeated last year’s Kremlin Cup winner Igor Kunitsyn in the first round, progresses after a 6-4, 7-6 scoreline.
“I had expected that there would be great fan support for Marat, but it didn’t prevent me. It was quite a normal match for me. I’m very happy to have won. I beat Fabrice Santoro this year, who is leaving tennis, now it’s Marat’s turn,” Evgeny Korolev told the tournament’s official website.
Safin said Korolev wasn’t playing under any pressure and was able to fire winners almost at will.
Despite going down so early in the tournament, Marat managed to make an impression, earlier kicking No. 1 seed Nikolay Davydenko out of the competition.
The Russian star, who is just 29 years old, decided to quit his tennis career, as he says he’s tired and doesn’t enjoy being on the court any more.
During his 13 years in the sport, Marat Safin has won 15 tournaments, including two Grand Slams – the US Open 2000 and Australian Open 2005.
He held the No. 1 ATP Ranking for 9 weeks in 2000, and also twice won the Davis cup with the Russian team, in 2002 and 2006.
22.10.2009, 11:10
Safin blasts Davydenko out of Kremlin CupFormer World No.1 Marat Safin had to come from a set down to defeat top seed Nikolay Davydenko in an all-Russian duel in the first round of the Kremlin Cup. |
25.10.2009, 23:23
Youzhny keeps Kremlin Cup in MoscowIt’s been a happy day for Russian tennis fans at the Kremlin Cup as Mikhail Youzhny has guaranteed the men’s singles crown remains in the tournament's home city for the sixth consecutive year. |
