Tennis
Sensational triumph of Russia. Our tennis player performed a miracle in front of the President of the United States
Marat Safin / Photo: © Jamie Squire / Staff / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru
Marat did not hold back his emotions and even swore at the coach. But the main thing is that it worked!
The Russians have won the US Open in men’s singles twice so far in the history of the tournament. In 2021, Daniil Medvedev defeated Novak Djokovic in three sets in the final, and 21 years before that, the legendary Pete Sampras was defeated in front of US President Marat Safin.
Even his own coach did not believe in his victory.
step to the trophy
At the turn of the century, Marat Safin showed brilliant results. In November 2000, the 20-year-old Russian managed to become the first racket of the world, and a little earlier the tennis player got to his first victory in the Grand Slam tournament. It must be admitted that it was not possible to perform consistently throughout the season: in Australia it was not possible to get beyond the first round, in France the athlete was able to reach the quarterfinals, but at Wimbledon he stumbled in the second round. It would seem that nothing guaranteed a triumphant result at the US Open.
However, by the end of August, Safin was in decent shape – on the eve of the start of the US Open, he managed to reach the final of the tournament in Indianapolis, and at the US Open-2000 itself, the Russian received a fairly high sixth seed. Only the Americans Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras, the Brazilian Gustavo Kuerten, the Swede Magnus Norman and another representative of our country, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, were higher in the ranking. True, almost all of them alternately left the race long before the final: the exception was the favorite of the American public, Sampras.
And Marat, meanwhile, was walking towards the American along his net. Individual matches turned out to be relatively easy – in the fourth round, the Russian gave only five games to the Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero. It took a long time to mess with some opponents – the Frenchman Sebastian Grosjean admitted defeat in the third round only after 3 hours and 25 minutes of a five-set confrontation. However, all these dangerous opponents, including the strong German Nicholas Kiefer and the finalist of the previous draw of the tournament, Todd Martin from the USA, were left behind. The trophy was just one step away.
“The Future Behind Him”
The favorite of the finals of the US Open, of course, was the American Sampras, and not only because he was slightly higher in the ranking. For Pete, the finals of prestigious tournaments were not new for a long time: by that time, the 29-year-old athlete had won the Australian Open twice, won Wimbledon seven times, and won the trophy four times at the US Open. The public, including US President Bill Clinton, came to watch their favorite’s record-breaking 14th Grand Slam victory.
The history of sports has known many cases when the recognized favorite failed. But for some reason, many experts were sure that right now Marat had no chance of winning. Sampras did not believe in the success of his counterpart, and Marat himself later admitted that he “did not expect that he would play normally.” But it’s one thing when you yourself doubt your abilities, without admitting it out loud, and another thing when you hear from your own coach an unpleasant assessment of your chances.
– At that time, Alexander Volkov was my coach. As a man of the old generation, he was afraid of everything. Before the game, he told me: “Just don’t lose in three sets.” It hurt me a lot. I wasn’t about to give in. He sent him a foul language … He went out and did what he believed in, ”Safin recalled in an interview with RT.
Sampras started with a powerful pitch, hinting that all the predictions were not accidental. However, Marat was not discouraged – he also demonstrated that he had complete order with the serve, and during the draws he acted more confidently than his eminent rival. The result of the first set is 6:4 in favor of the Russian. It became clear that he would not lose in three games, but the audience still did not doubt the favorable outcome for Pete. They began to doubt when Safin took the second set even more confidently – 6:3. The American needed extra effort to win, but our tennis player left him no chance – 6:3 in the third set, and here he is, the long-awaited trophy, in the hands of a rising star.
– The future belongs to him. He reminds me ten years ago, when the game was not work, but a real pleasure. Tennis performed by Safin is a kind of hurricane. I’m not that old yet, but still I couldn’t keep up with him today. I will say this: I’m sure Safin will soon win both the Australian Open and Roland Garros,” Sampras said after the final.
In Australia, Marat eventually won, though not so soon – after five years. But in France, Safin, unfortunately, did not manage to get to the final. The Russian was the first racket of the world, won the Davis Cup twice, but still he failed to become the same legend on a planetary scale as the same Sampras.
Source: Sportbox
I am a sports journalist who has written for a number of Sportish. I have a background in journalism and have been writing since I was young. My main focus is sports news, but I also write about general news. I am currently working as an author at Sportish.
Leader in ATP world rankings Carlos Alcaraz He held a press conference after defeating Adam Walton in the first round of the 2026 Australian Open:
– Carlos, congratulations on the successful start of the tournament. How would you evaluate today’s match? Frankly, the second set was tense, but in the end did you get through it without any losses?
– I can say that it was a difficult match for me. In the first set, everything was decided by a break. He made a few mistakes on his first serve. He also played very well, very reliably, and I think he was constantly trying to find a position to attack as much as possible.
In the second set, he started to find more space for aggressive play. In general, I played good tennis, but in one of the games I lost my concentration a little – mostly when I was fighting with myself, and after that everything became more difficult.
But overall I am satisfied. To be honest, I was ready for a serious battle. Although the level it showed was a bit of a surprise to me. I had to pull myself together and be ready for this battle. I’m happy with the first match of the season and the level I was able to show.
– Carlos, congratulations. What are you most pleased with today and what do you think needs to be improved to go far again in the tournament group?
“I think I hit the ball well.” Of course it could have been played better. But I’m glad I did everything I had to do. I acted correctly in terms of behavior and mental attitude on the field. I always had a good attitude, always tried to think positively. I think I did a good job with that and that was one of the main goals of this match.
In terms of tactics and the level of play in general, I understand that there are many aspects that need to be improved for the next round if I want to go further.
– Carlos, for many the quarter-finals are an excellent result, but you have not yet progressed further in this tournament. Do you have an explanation for why you performed less well than others at this Grand Slam?
– Yes, this is a little difficult for me to explain. It’s strange that I haven’t made it past the quarter-finals in Australia yet because I think I’m playing good tennis here. I played very well here for the last two years, but lost to Isner and Djokovic in the quarter-finals. If you are the first or second racket in the world, let’s say these are not the most ordinary opponents at this stage.
This is not an excuse, but I really want to do better than previous years. I have a feeling that this season I might have a chance to go further.
Source: Sport UA
I am a sports journalist who has worked in print and online. I have authored articles for a sports website and have covered sports news for over 6 years.
January 19, Ukrainian tennis player Yulia Starodubtseva (WTA 110) will begin play in the 2026 Australian Open main draws.
In the first round, the Ukrainian player will play against the Australian representative Aily Tomljanovic (WTA76). The match will kick off with the opener of the evening session at John Cain Arena. The estimated start time of the match is 08.00 Kyiv time.
The best moments of tennis matches LIVE on Telegram channel Tennis on Sport.ua
This will be the second head-to-head meeting between the rivals. The score is 1:0 in favor of Ayla.
The winner of the match will face Elena-Gabriela Ruse (Romania, WTA 79) in the second match.
DAY CALENDAR
TOURNAMENT TABLE
Source: Sport UA
I am a sports journalist who has worked in print and online. I have authored articles for a sports website and have covered sports news for over 6 years.
Tennis
Yulia Starodubtseva – Ayla Tomlyanovich. Prediction and announcement for the Australian Open match
On November 19, Yulia Starodubtseva (WTA 110) and Ayla Tomljanovic (WTA 76) will start competing at the Australian Open.
The meeting is planned to start at 08.00 Kyiv time.
Sport.ua together with a betting partner bet announcing the upcoming fight!
Yulia Starodubtseva
The Ukrainian athlete has already played six matches this season and won five of them. Starodubtseva started with a tournament held in Auckland, where she successfully qualified by beating Frenchwoman Ponchet and Austrian Tagger. Katie Boulter suffered defeat in the first round of the main round.
The tennis player also started the Australian Open with the qualifiers, where she beat the Frenchwoman Tubello 6:2, 3:6, 6:0. Then there were victories against the Greek Papamikhail, 6:1, 6:2. In the qualifying final, Starodubtseva defeated Bulgarian Tomova with sets 7:6, 6:2. The Ukrainian player is in good form ahead of this season’s first Grand Slam.
Ayla Tomljanovic
The Australian athlete is a typical middle player in world tennis. Even though there are breaks, it has been in the top 100 for a long time. Tomlyanovich is 32 years old, he can already be considered a veteran. Although the Australian Open is a tennis player’s home tournament, he performs worst here because he has never been able to advance beyond the second round.
Tomljanovic started this season with a tournament in Brisbane, where she defeated France’s Jacquemo with scores of 6:1, 6:3 and then lost in a tough fight to the powerful Carolina Muchova with scores of 6:4, 1:6, 6:7. There was also a tournament in Adelaide where they managed to beat Clara Towson 7:6, and the opponent refused. Ayla, who was ahead 2:0 in the first set of the second round, withdrew from the match due to a knee injury at 40:40 in her serve. It is unclear at this time whether he is 100% physically ready.
personal meetings
Tennis players met only once, it was in September last year, then in Beijing Tomljanovic managed to win in two sets: 7:6 and 6:2.
To guess
This couple does not have a clear favorite, maybe it will be easier for the Australian, the public will support him, his body is more accustomed to such a time zone. For tennis players at this level, every victory in a major is extremely valuable.
I am waiting for a difficult and unpredictable match that can end with any outcome, I will bet on more than 20.5 matches for 1.66.
Yulia Starodubtseva19.01.2026 –
08:00
Ayla Tomljanovic 1.66 place a bet KRAIL License No. 559 dated 12/05/2024 Source: Sport UA
I am a sports journalist who has worked in print and online. I have authored articles for a sports website and have covered sports news for over 6 years.
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