you're wrong here safin is a total wasted talent. two slams for a grinder like hewitt ok, but for this guy its a joke and he'll be remembered as a loser.

trixxyfest, you are so rough, and so right.
all-e-all I'll miss him.

trixxy come on jesus!!! safin is gonna be remembered as a loser with 2 slams?!! sorry but you are crazy this time. okay fine maybe we thought he'd get like 6 or 7 or something, but he's no loser. i will miss him too & if he retires i'll be kinda sad. :( :(

dejaboohoo go read the crap you just posted again. you just said he should have won a lot more slams than he did, so going by what you said he's a LOSER. hewitt ain't a loser because he didn't have safin's talent. safin had more talent than anybody on tour but comes away with the same slams as hewitt, that's why i call the guy a loser.

k thx but i'm going to bed & i don't feel like arguing @ this point. safin isn't a loser bc nobody with slams is a loser & anyone with a clue knows that not just tennis fans. cu later hater. :D :D

safin does nothing wrong in fangirls eyes but whatever. read up on some articles from smart tennis people and let me know what ya find out. nobody will remember the guy as a success story after he's gone.

dejablule,
"trixxy come on jesus!!!" Deut 5:11 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain: for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

As for Safin,
yes he may be a waisted talent, but he certainly won't be remembered as a loser.
He is the living proof of what a modern tennis player MUST have as a (apart from the actual physical abilities and tennis skill) main quality: mental strenght and consistency.
He is almost opposite of Nadal: tons of natural abililty, efortless endless source of shotmaking, yet all that not utilised to its full capacity.
I would never dismiss Marat as a loser: he is simply a mature individual who has a balanced outlook on lifle and does not want to sacrifice all his life to practicing and being an ATP nomad, the guy has a soul and time to smell the roses.
He wil be remembered as a glorious talent, a very handsome bloke, and bohemian character...in my books, a breath of fresh air!

nole, this may shock you, but...I agree with you! imo what makes Marat so popular (apart from his talent) is the fact he's always recognised there are more important things in life than tennis. I won't disagree with the "handsome bloke" comment either!
btw, don't take this the wrong way, but Novak reminds me of Marat a little. Obviously he doesn't smash racquets or swear in Russian, but he's very interested in life outside tennis. I remember reading an interview with him where he expressed surprise that neither RF or AM read books. Hey, I'm with Novak. Reading is very important :)
trixxy - fangirls? Charming. Safin's career may have disappointed you, but he earned 13 million dollars and, until his knee injury, was a top 10 or even top 5 player. Of the two GS finals he lost, only AO 2002 could be classed as a disappointment imo. Losing to Roger Federer in the 2004 final was no disgrace. Oh, and DejaBlue said "maybe we thought he'd get 6 or 7 slams", not "he should have won more slams". Arguably he underachieved with the talent he possessed, but no one who's won 2 GS, helped Russia win 2 Davis Cups and been ranked world number one should be called a loser.

Marat Safin, the guy who gave me a lot to cheer for after Sampras's decline.

Wasted talent, but I will miss this guy for the magic he produced on court, and the joy he brought along with his personality. And yes, maybe his outlook on life cost him accolades as a tennis player, but it didn't lose him any fans. We just love him for what he is.

Gorgeous gentleman, dear. I have to disagree with you slightly here, I'm afraid. Indeed he made a bushel of cash for himself and the ATP, but think of how much more he right well may have done, if only he had been more consistent. Application of talent is a crucial factor, and Marat slacked a bit.

No player who won the biggest prizes in tennis is a loser. Marat won all the levels including the Davis Cup, so I think the questions are answered.

He'll be missed imensely. No offence to Rafa or Federer, you know ,Kell, how much I adore one and respect the other but Marat is a league of his own. Handsome above words, with a spicy personal life about which we all get to know almost everythung and a great tennis player when he's on. In these times when profesionalism in tennis reached uncomfortable levels, it's hard to see someone like him breaking through soon. I'll miss him terribly :(

Marat is an awesome talent and a marketer's wet dream. His career resume isn't that of a wasted talent. Sure, he could have done more, but Marat is Marat and is already a legend of the game.

A more appropriate player to tag the "wasted talent" label on would be David "Fat Dave" Nalbandian. This guy had all the natural talent in the world but only feels the need to exhibit it 2 months a year. The other 10 include hot dog contests, rally events in Argentina, and God knows what else.

Well, Marat didn't waste his talent as much as Nalbandian thats for sure. But his legend will be more for the person he was than for the game he played. Sure, those two matches against Sampras and Federer were the stuff of a legend, and I only wish he could have done more of it. But I guess injury was one thing that took its toll on him.

Regardless, if the guy's happy, that's all his fans want.

He really should have done better. His game is almost complete. I dunno what is missing. Everything is there. Nalbandian is even worst and to think that he dominated Fed during their junior time, it's even frustrating that he have not won a Slam. He was much thinner back then. Now he's fat and I heard him say he is a part-time rally driver. Talk about commitment.

nalbandian didn't have safin's talent, so his type of waste isn't as bad especially cuz the guy is a fat ass. safin should have done more but at least he wasn't a lazy git who didn't give a rip about the game paying him to be out there. even though i say safin's still gonna be remembered as a loser because of his talent level, nalbandian is a loser because he's just a real loser. safin at least tried at times in his career but nalbandian was too busy at the buffet.

What's not to love about Marat? He is just a great personality, great talent, gorgeous, and so what if he didn't win umpteen majors? That obviously was never his goal (and once you get a knee injury, your outlook changes, right?). Like Marat said, tennis is tennis. I'm sure everyone has his or her favorite Marat memory (moon us again Marat!). He has been great for tennis, and is still out there competing. I hope he (and Fabrice for that matter!) doesn't leave too soon. It would be a loss for the fans and for tennis.

If there's one thing Marat WON'T be remembered as, it's a loser.

He should have won more than two Slams, but he still won two. He didn't win more because he didn't care about winning more. He was still great for tennis.

Heck, both Williams sisters should have way more slams than whatever they number they finish at, but like Safin they didn't care about winning every single slam. They also are still great for tennis.

I think he will be remembered as an eccentric who should have done better.

Players lik marat safin can never b calld loosers. his persona his style his way of lookin at things is different...He totaly wasted his talent 4 sure but he doesnt hav ny regrets....
It is alwas a joy 2 watch him play , the passion he has is unbelievable...we hav 2 respect him 4 that....

Eccentric? Having an affable personality and indulging in life outside tennis doesn't make you eccentric.

I honestly think the lines judges HOPE he'll foot fault so they can see what Marat will do. And the news conferences? I wish I could have all of them on on DVD.

And RickyDimon is right - he is no loser. He is super cool, in a James Bond kind of way. When God made Marat, they broke the mold!

Safin is gifted guy who lacks a no. of things 1 of them being motivation....Now very guy cant hav it..Safin is a character and he shows no hypocrisies on and of the field ,the guy truly is awsum ..A great player, cant forget the US open final...

I'll miss Safin terribly when he retires from tennis. I think there's no point speculating how many more slams he could have won with his talent. What we tennis fans shld do is to appreciate what he had done for tennis and the entertainment he had brought to us. He is a guy with a lot of character and there's no doubt he is an awesome player in his own right. He may not have won slams like Fed, but he did bring joy and a different kind of play to us. All the best Safin!

Well, I guess bashing himself so much and still can come up with wins against the best players shows eccentricity.

I don't know many who won't be sorry to see Marat retire.
Ironically, I think he should see about refereeing some matches. I know some people who would pay to see that.

mara, yes, I'd pay to see Marat doing that myself! Can't imagine too many players arguing with him to be honest. Agree with Ricky that he didn't really care about winning more than 2 slams. Tennis was never "the be all and end all" for Safin that it is for Federer and Nadal. He occasionally says that he wishes his career was more like Federer's, and RF has certainly criticised him for wasting his talent. But I agree with Rusedski that Marat would have quit within a couple of years if he'd been told to focus on tennis like Roger (or Rafa). I'm sure he'll enjoy his retirement anyway :)

Looser or not looser that is the q.... :) However we all die at the end. A waste of talent for tennis fan, ok, but he lives his life the happiest way for him, that is more important than title, glory or prize list ?

Marat brought a lot of excitement to tennis during his "good old days". He's a very colorful character... always looking forward to seeing him play specially (ironic) when he's losing! His tantrums in court made him bigger than his wins!

Like agf25agf said, Marat is a colorful character and it's gonna be a real shame to let him go. I don't know what you all think, but to me winning two GS it could be more than enough. Look at us now, amazed about how good Nole is and he "only" has one GS (though he's still young, of course). Or Gaudio, who just won RG and he's a legend in his country.

Most players can only dream about getting to a GS final, so I think Marat will be remember as a really good player, for sure.

I have loved watching Safin play. An incredibly gifted tennis player. Just shows how difficult it is to win more than one slam at the very top. Safin has personality, character and a great game...I wish he would stay around for longer.

It seems he might not be retiring this year - although after last night's repeat of Barcelona scenario losing the 2nd set from a commanding lead - maybe he will review this decision.
http://www.safinator.com/home.html

Marat Safin is awsome! his charisma and handsome face not to mention his great game when on! will be sorely missed, you don't call a former no.1, GS winner x 2 and a few master series to boot a loser! When he beat Djokovic last year at Wimbledon when Djokovic had been on good form all year, all my friends were shocked, but not me, I said "Safin, he can beat anyone when his on fire, he's that talented" he's known for that too, injury was tough for Marit but he's large frame doesn't help, Tsonga likewise has a huge upper body frame and suffers regularly with back or leg injuries. I think Safin has a huge fan base, his a great person as well as a talented tennis player.