MARAT SAFIN
Russian
Marat Mubinovich Safin (Мара́т Муби́нович Са́фин [mɐˈrat mʊˈbʲinəvʲɪt͡ɕ ˈsafʲɪn], Tatar: Марат Мөбин улы Сафин, Marat Möbin uğlı Safin) (born January 27, 1980) is a Russian politician and retired tennis player of Tatar ethnicity. Safin won two Grand Slam tournaments and reached the world no. 1 ranking during his career. He was also famous for his emotional outbursts and sometimes fiery temper on court. Safin is the older brother of former world no. 1 WTA player Dinara Safina. They are the first brother-sister tandem in tennis history who both achieved no. 1 rankings.
Safin began his professional career in 1997, and held the No. 1 world ranking for a total of 9 weeks between November 2000 and April 2001. He won his first Grand Slam title at the 2000 US Open after defeating Pete Sampras, and won the 2005 Australian Open, defeating Australian Lleyton Hewitt in the final. Safin helped lead Russia to Davis Cup victories in 2002 and 2006. Despite his dislike of grass courts, he became the first Russian man to reach the semi-finals of Wimbledon at the 2008 Wimbledon Championships. At the time of his final Grand Slam appearance at the US Open on September 2, 2009, Safin was No. 58 in the official world men's tennis rankings.
Safin is one of only two men to have managed to win a Grand Slam tournament where at least three of the Big Four have competed, the other being Juan Martín del Potro.
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