Safin turns from villain to hero after Davis Cup win
贏得戴維斯杯後﹐薩芬從頑童變成國家英雄

By Gennady Fyodorov

MOSCOW, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Marat Safin, heavily criticised by the media for his perceived arrogance and flamboyant lifestyle, has been hailed as Russia's saviour after he clinched the country's second Davis Cup title.

Safin beat Jose Acasuso 6-3 3-6 6-3 7-6 in a nerve-racking fifth and decisive rubber before a capacity 10,000-strong home crowd at Moscow's Olympic arena on Sunday to seal Russia's 3-2 victory over Argentina in the three-day final.

"Marat saved Russia!" trumpeted a headline in the popular tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda on Monday.
2006/12/4(路透社) 一直被媒體強烈抨擊態度高傲﹑過得意盡歡生活的薩芬﹐在捧起今年俄羅斯的DAVIS CUP 冠軍獎杯後﹐全國熱烈地喝采著﹐他是俄羅斯DAVIS CUP的絕地反攻英雄。
薩芬在莫斯科 OLYMPIC 體育場一萬名家鄉父老前﹐擊敗阿根廷的ACASUSO﹐贏得關鍵第五分﹐使俄羅斯在三天激戰後以3-2領先終於贏得DAVIS CUP決賽。
"馬拉特拯救了俄羅斯"星期一俄羅斯有名的小報把這句話放在頭條版面上

"Safin played a key role in Russia's victory," echoed the influential business daily Kommersant. "First, he teamed up with Dmitry Tursunov to win the doubles on Saturday, then overpowered the dogged Acasuso to seal a great victory."

Russia captain Shamil Tarpishchev, who on Sunday became the first person to lead his country to two Davis and two Fed Cup titles, also praised Safin.

"We had two choices for the last rubber and I picked Safin over Tursunov mainly for his big-match experience," explained Tarpishchev, dubbed a "tennis genius" by fellow coaches and some of his players. "It proved the right decision after all. Marat not only won the last point, he also saved my reputation."
很有影響力的另一個商業報紙也回應 " 薩芬在俄羅斯的勝利中扮演著關鍵角色﹐首先﹐他跟TURSUNOV 搭檔贏得雙打﹐接著再第三天痛宰ACASUSO﹐終結這場激烈的冠軍爭奪戰"
史上第一個帶領俄羅斯拿下兩座DAVIS CUP的俄羅斯隊長﹐ TARPISCHEV﹐也對薩芬十分激賞。
他解釋最後一場比賽的選擇: "在2-2之後﹐我面臨困難的抉擇﹐最後決定派薩芬而非TURSUNOV上場﹐主要就是借重他大比賽的豐富經驗" ﹐一些教練及隊員們一致封予"網球天才" 的名號給隊長。"最終的結果證明我做了正確的決定。MARAT 不只是贏了最後一分﹐他使我不致浪得虛名﹐從此蒙羞"

It was not all plain sailing for the temperamental Safin, however.

Just a day before, he was vilifed by local media after meekly surrendering to Argentina number one David Nalbandian in straight sets in Friday's singles.
不過對火爆脾氣的薩芬來說﹐一切不是那麼順利的。
才在前一天﹐在三盤慘敗給納班之後﹐他被媒體狠狠地修理毀謗....

LAVISH LIFESTYLE
奢靡的生活方式

Press reports said the 26-year-old Muscovite, long known for his lavish lifestyle and night-time escapades, was seen partying in a posh nightclub on the eve of his match with Nalbandian.

Over the weekend, Safin bitterly complained about the court surface, was involved in a heated discussion with the team captain and had to overcome injury and fatigue to win the decider.

The former world number one was also accused of over-confidence after suggesting at Thursday's draw that Russia would clinch the tie in two days.
媒體報導說﹐這位26歲長期生活靡爛﹐夜夜笙歌的莫斯科人﹐在跟納班對陣的前一夜還在夜店狂歡。
不只如此，整個周末﹐薩芬激動地抱怨場地﹐跟隊長有了強烈爭執﹐腳部還因場地不適掙扎﹐在疼痛與疲累的狀況下贏下了決定性的第五場比賽。
這位前世界第一在簽表出來之後﹐公開表示俄羅斯兩天之內就會奪冠﹐也被嚴厲指責他實在太大言不慚，過度自信了。
But it was all forgotten on Sunday as Safin was thronged by jubilant team mates and embraced by former Russian President Boris Yeltsin after scoring the winning point.

Asked to compare his feelings to the 2002 victory over France in Paris, Safin told reporters: "This one is probably a bit more special because it happened at home in front of all our fans."

The former Australian and U.S. Open champion said the win was especially memorable for him following a difficult season, plagued by injuries and inconsistent form.
但一切不快隨著星期天薩芬贏得比賽後被狂喜的隊友舉起﹐葉利欽擁抱﹐漸漸為大家所淡忘了。
被問及跟在2002年擊敗法國贏得DAVIS CUP 的不同時﹐薩芬說﹐這個冠軍更特別﹐因為我們是在國人面前贏得的。這個澳網美網冠軍並表示﹐這個勝利對整年賽季不順﹐傷病困擾的他而言是多麼甜美與難忘。

"This was really bad year for me, probably the worst in my whole career," said Safin, who earlier this year tumbled out of the top 100 in the ATP rankings for the first time since making his professional debut at a 17-year-old in 1997.

"So winning the Davis Cup should give me a much-needed confidence boost," he said. "I really hope to do well next year, regain my rankings. I'm especially looking forward to playing in the Australian Open after missing it this year with a knee injury and not defending the title I won in 2005."

Safin also thanked Argentina's soccer great Diego Maradona for being his lucky charm.
前一陣子排名掉到出道以來最低的100名外的薩芬表示﹐"今年對我來說真是不堪回首的一年﹐大概是生涯最糟的了吧﹐因此贏得DAVIS CUP 讓我重拾自信﹐我很希望明年能表現更好﹐回復我的排名。在膝傷無法衛冕澳網之後﹐我對澳隊特別地期待"
薩芬同時也感謝阿根廷足球傳奇人物MARADONA 為他帶來好運。


The Russian, a big Spartak Moscow fan, said it was his long-time dream to meet the former World Cup-winning captain.

"I shook hands with Maradona on Saturday and it brought me luck. It was that magic left hand, the Hand of God," Safin said on Sunday. "I think his Midas touch just rubbed off me."

Maradona scored the first of his two goals with his left hand in Argentina's 2-1 quarter-final win over England in the 1986 World Cup finals. He later called it the "Hand of God".
這個莫斯科SPARTAK 足球迷說﹐他非常興奮能與前世界足球先生會面。
"星期六我跟他握手﹐而這為我帶來好運。就是那隻摩術左手﹐上帝之手 ﹐他這一握﹐有如點石成金!
1986 年世足賽﹐他以他的摩術左手於八強賽中擊敗英國。之後﹐他稱那隻手為"上帝之手"