SEASON STOP

Marat descided to stop for this season. He'll have a few weeks and will practise hard afterwards. Look below for an explaination and other important stuff!

From OS: Marat was not very happy with his standard of play at the Madrid Masters and has decided after discussion with his coach Hernan Gumy and his management that it would be better to finish his 2007 season now. His mountain adventure which he thoroughly enjoyed, took him out of his rythm and also left him with no energy. He thought he was ready coming back in Moscow but found that the stress of playing back to back tournaments was too much and his body just was not ready to cope with it. He thought he could play at a good level but it didn't happen.
He will take some time off to get his energy levels back and then in 3 weeks time will meet with his coach and they will spend a long period of practice time in Valencia - cleaning up his game and working hard on his approach, his work ethic and his general attitude to the year ahead. The intention is to be ready for the Australian season. Marat knows his ranking will drop but feels it is better to get himself ready for the new season rather than push at this stage.
He will not play in the Davis Cup Final in the US. Basically the Davis Cup team left it up to him to make the decision and Marat decided that right now there are 4 better players than him who are in form and can make sure they play to the best of their ability for Russia. Recently Davydenko won Moscow again and Tursunov won in Bangkok - both on hardcourts which is the surface that the Final will be played on. Marat was proud to be involved in the run up to the Final and has every faith in his fellow players that they will perform to their very best ability for Russia and make it a hard contest against the US.
Marat would like to say thank you to all his fans for their love and support this year through the difficult times and hopes they will continue to support him as he strives to find the level he needs to play well again.

After this message from Marat on the OS some cruel guy wrote an horrible article. Read below the article and the reactions from Marat on that.

Article from www.tennis.com
Dear Marat:
What’s up? Hope all is well. You must be in a good mood today after Russia¹s upset win over England in the UEFA game, huh? Big surprise, but then it¹s never easy for a visiting team to win in Moscow.
I saw you on TV this week, at the Madrid Masters. Looking good. You’ll be rocking the ’fro in no time.
After yet another early loss in Madrid this week, is it time for Marat Safin to think about packing his bags for good?© Jasper Juinen/Getty ImagesBut listen, I’m writing on a more serious note. Let me be blunt: You’re a mess, man. You haven’t won more than two matches in a row since mid-July, and your best result this season was in February when you reached the semifinals of Las Vegas. Fitting, since you’ve been coming up craps ever since.
It’s the same story with you: another week, another miserable loss. In Madrid you, big guy, lost to an even bigger guy, Ivo Karlovic 6-3, 6-4, in 59 minutes. What, were you double-parked?
I could cut you some slack, since the 6-foot-10 Karlovic is a nightmare to play on an indoor court, but you obviously didn’t go into the match with much hope. What was it that you said? Oh, right, “I [didn’t] expect anything from this one. Just finish the year and that’s it.”
Ah, the power of positive thinking.
You’re killing me, Marat. Lately, you’ve been as committed to tennis as Hugh Hefner is to monogamy. And when you do play, it’s been painful to watch. Please, explain your flameouts this season to Feliciano Lopez, Kristof Vliegen, Janko Tipsarevic, Hyung-Taik Lee, and Nicolas Kiefer. Journeymen, each and every one of them, and you barely put up a fight. Which is more than I can say for your performance against Nicolas Mahut in Indian Wells, Calif., where you posted a bagel in the third set. That’s actually quite impressive. On some level, it’s harder to find a way to lose a set at love than it is to scratch out a game or two, especially with your firepower.
It’s all leading me to believe that you should quit tennis. I don’t mean temporarily hang up your racquet so you can go on a farcical journey in the Himalayans to regroup, reenergize, and refocus—clearly, you’re incapable of that. You should pack up and never return.
Marat, this isn’t an easy thing to say for me. Ever since you crashed the scene in 2000, blowing Pete Sampras off the court in the U.S. Open final—a victory that was at once brutal and artistic—I’ve been a big fan. No one hits a cleaner, heavier ball than you, and it’s been refreshing to have a top player with a fiery, melodramatic personality. You’ve got soul, unlike your compatriots Nikolay Davydenko and, before him, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, who treat the game with a stone-cold business-like efficiency.
But your “why-me” theatrics have grown tired. Boris Becker played the role of Hamlet, too, pitching his head to the sky after a mistake as if some otherworldly power was torturing him for kicks. The difference was that Becker was a winner throughout his career.
What's with the ’tude, dude? You’re like a teenager who’s way too self-absorbed for his own good. When you were recently asked about the gambling investigation in men’s tennis, which strikes at the very core of the sport’s integrity and deserves an informed response from all of the top players, your response was weaker than an Elena Dementieva second serve. “To be honest,” you said, “I don’t really care. Whatever people do and whatever they want to do, I don’t care. If the world collapses, I don’t really care. I have enough problems myself. I can’t worry about other people’s problems.”
Never mind that this is the kind of thinking that gets us all into trouble in every facet of life – like, say, a war in Iraq – it shows a lack of respect for the sport that made you a millionaire in the first place. Even John McEnroe, Mr. Ego himself, cares (or at least pretends to care) about tennis.
Look, Marat, I know you’re hard on yourself—self-criticism is in your blood, ingrained over many formative childhood years by your mother and the severe Soviet system. Positive reinforcement? It didn’t exist in your universe. You’ve even said, “I didn’t care to play tennis, didn’t really like it.”
And I know you’ve always struggled with the high expectations that came from beating Sampras. You should be No. 1 if only you apply yourself, or so goes the conventional wisdom. It seems to me that you’ve chosen to diffuse this talk by playing so horrendously that no one can even entertain the thought of you challenging for majors anymore.
That’s a sad commentary on your career. Didn’t you get any perspective when you ditched your Davis Cup mates in September to trek up Nepal’s Cho Oyu mountain, only to quit at the base camp. I can only imagine how miserable you were, and how miserable you made your fellow hikers on that journey, when you discovered that climbing a mountain is, like, real work.
Tennis is hard work, too. You can’t keep playing meathead tennis, rallying without many changes in pace and placement, and expect to win. You’re good, but not that good.
I came across a quote yesterday from Paul Annacone that was apropos of your career. “My old boss said to me once,” Annacone says, “the definition of how good you are is in three areas: your head, your heart, and your talent level.”
What’s the average of a D, F, and A? We’re talking only slightly better than Marcelo Rios here.
Don’t laugh. He won 18 career titles; you’re at 15. Granted, you’ve got 2 majors, while Rios never won a Slam. But you both share that absurd, petulant attitude, which undermines everything you do on court.
Hey, man, it’s your career. But you’re 27, and if you can get healthy you might want to dig in for a year or two before your body, or mind, or both, totally conk out. No regrets, right? Otherwise, spare your fans the heartache and join Yevgeny at the poker table.
Later,
James

From OS:
Dear Fans
A lot of things have happened lately and with the season finishing early for Marat after some difficult times, we would like to share Marat's thoughts and vision for the upcoming year with his fans. And also to give our response to an insulting article recently published on a well known site which some of you have seen and commented on.
Marat has decided with Madrid to end his season mainly because of the following facts.First of all to give a complete rest to his wrist. It is still niggling and he does not want to further aggravate it at this stage because he does not want to go into next year with the niggle and does not want the wrist to bother him next year.Secondly he felt with all that has happened in the last year, it would be wiser to start his "off" time earlier than usual and also to be able to start his preparation much earlier to ensure than he is of maximum fitness for challenging 2008.
As we wrote in the article before he truly feels that the Davis Cup team has four players better than him and his absence will not be felt that much as there are the people willing and able to take Russia successfully through the final.
For this reason he made his decision and will stick to it. He will be supporting the team in spirit and willing them on.
Recently an article was published on the Internet by the editor of tennis.com under his "Viewpoint" which was trying to put a smear on Marat's situation plus making recommendations re things he should do for the future.This "article" was written by someone who pretends to be a fan of Marat Safin.
Neither Marat nor his website has ever in the past made a point of commenting on things that appear in the media because throughout his career Marat has always maintained a great relationship with all channels of the media - be it written, TV or radio - always been available when asked for interviews etc, respected their work and treated them with dignity.
Now for the first time an article is written on a "respected" website and this article was full of hate - really patronizing and vicious in its comments and aimed at hurting Marat, his reputation, his past contribution and achievements in the field of tennis.
Marat himself was very insulted by this article that was brought to his attention for the very reasons stated above.
To try and attempt to under estimate Marat's past achievements in tennis and for his country and to try and present him as someone who doesn't respect the game of tennis or what tennis has done for him, is totally misleading and a deliberate attempt at muck raking.
Marat loves the game of tennis ( the reason why he came back to play this year even though he had decided after the US Open to write the rest of the season off). On every occasion during interviews he has always said how much tennis has done for him and how grateful he is for the life it has given him. To imply that he doesn't care is a total misrepresentation. There aren't too many players around the world today that can proudly present two Grand Slam Titles, Five Masters Series Titles and Two Davis Cup Titles for his country.
One of the reasons why Marat's popularity has always exceeded his ranking was not only because of his cheerful smile (and he really does have one!!) but also his kindness, honesty and most of all his sensitivity which all make up the personality which so many people want around on the tour these days.
We his team, friends and fans have all been insulted by the inferences made by the writer in his "Viewpoint". As the editor - what right does he have to make such damming innuendos about Marat? And to say he should give up and go play poker is such that the man who "wrote" this has no idea as to the actual man Marat Safin is.
We are all open to criticism and opposition from others but not when it comes in a wrong and unjustified manner.
Many fans of Marat have expressed their disgust at the manner of the writing of this article and while certain points are the truth - the innuendos made are not.
Marat is the first to be aware of his situation, his obligation to tennis and the challenges still lying ahead of him. If he wasn't committed to tennis he wouldn't be even thinking of them. He looks forward that together with hard work and your (the fans) support, 2008 will be a successful year for him. More than once in his career - mainly after his injuries - there were people who slated him and said he should retire. But Marat has no need to prove anything to anyone and as it happens he enjoys and is committed to the sport of tennis he loves.
He will do his utmost to bring a smile back to the faces of his fans once again. And lets all keep holding on to that thought that the man who has brought us so much joy will do so again.
As so many people keep pointing out - tennis needs him and one insincere "fan" is not going to stop Marat's commitment to bring joy to those who love tennis.
Marat would like to say once again to his fans with deep sincerity -
"Thank you for all your support and for being there for me during this time."
Webby and his team