Marina Maryenko, the mother of Andrey Rublev, has shared her perspective on the news that her son will be working with Marat Safin during the clay court season.
“Marat Safin and Andrey have known each other for a long time, and they share a good friendly relationship and mutual respect. I think everyone has great admiration for Marat, both as an outstanding athlete and as a charismatic and cool guy. It`s also important that Andrey`s coaching team knows Safin well. Their collaboration is not a spontaneous decision.”
“We are grateful to Marat for deciding to support and help my son. I won`t evaluate their cooperation from a sporting perspective, but Safin`s very presence in Andrey`s team is a significant event. Just seeing Marat in the box will be exciting. I`m really looking forward to it, it will be great.”
“It`s important to note that Andrey is not changing his team; no one from the staff has been removed. This is a joint decision, an internal process. By the way, Andrey was already under Marat`s guidance at the ATP Cup in 2019, and they won the tournament together. They enjoyed working together.”
“Another crucial point is that Andrey and Marat will speak the same language. Even a single coaching word in your native language can change an athlete`s mindset, it`s perceived more clearly. And Marat has a great sense of humor, which will help to lighten the atmosphere,” Maryenko told Sport24.
