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Post by choupi on Jan 3, 2007 2:47:01 GMT -5
Source: ATP.com, official site.
PERSONAL
Began playing tennis at age five...Played with his father and two older brothers, Marinos and Petros, who played Davis Cup...Father Christos owns a clothing store in Cyprus...Mother’s name is Andry...Has a younger sister Zena, who was adopted when she was one month old...No. 1 junior in 2003 with Australian Open juniors title and runner-up at US Open juniors in 2002-03...Won nine junior titles...Prefers hard courts...Considers himself a baseliner, with his serve and his forehand his biggest weapons...Biggest idol as a kid was Patrick Rafter, but also looked up to Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras...Enjoys playing and watching soccer...Favorite soccer team is Apollo in Cyprus...ôMan of the Year… in Cyprus in 2005...Has trained at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in Paris on an Olympic Solidarity Youth Development Programme Scholarship since age 13...Has a 35-11 career Davis Cup record (24-3 in singles) in 28 ties...Coached by Guillaume Peyre (since September 2005).
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
2000 – Reached QF at Cyprus Futures to earn first ATP points…2001 – As a 16-year-old, accepted wild cards at two Futures, reaching one 2nd RD…2002 – Reached one Futures QF …Reached doubles SF at Jamaica Futures (w/ Sela)…2003 – Won four titles in five Futures finals…Improved ranking by over 375 positions, finishing at No. 179…Reached QF at eight of 10 Futures events for a 32-6 mark…Reached final at Bukhara Challenger (l. to Goellner)…Reached SF of Challengers at Seoul and Tumkur…Was 11-4 in Challengers… Reached doubles final at Uzbekistan Futures (w/ Bohli)… 2004 – Captured Challenger titles at Bolton (d. Wessels) and Bratislava (d. Hrbaty)…Compiled an 18-10 record in Challengers…As wild card at Athens Olympics reached 2nd RD (d. Carraz, l. to Kiefer)…Qualified into first Grand Slam at US Open and reached 2nd RD (d. Mutis, l. to eventual champion Federer)…Was one of only two players (Agassi) to take at least one set off Federer at Open…2005 – Became player from Cyprus to rank in the Top 100...Reached Australian Open 4th RD with wins over Luzzi, Ljubicic and Robredo before losing to Federer...Underwent surgery on Feb. 9 to correct a congenital problem that caused a pair of muscles to constrict a nerve in his right arm... Returned to action in April at Monza Challenger and then at ATP event in Estoril (l. to Ferrero)... Made debut at Roland Garros (l. to Nalbandian) and Wimbledon (l. to Youzhny)...In Challengers, reached final in Cordoba (l. to Falla) and SF in Nottingham (l. to Bogdanovic)...Reached 2nd RD in Indianapolis (d. De Chaunac, l. to Carlsen) and QF in Tokyo (d. Puerta, l. to Ancic)... Win over Puerta was first in his career against a Top 10 foe…Qualified into Basel in last ATP event of the year, and defeated Mackin, Haas, Acasuso and Nalbandian to reach first career final before falling to Gonzalez in title match.
2006 IN REVIEW
The Cypriot made a breakthrough in his second full year on ATP circuit, finishing a year-end best No. 12 and winning his first career ATP title...In January, opened season with QF in Doha (l. to Federer) and took tennis world by surprise by reaching his first Grand Slam final at Australian Open (l. to Federer in four sets)...Came in ranked No. 54 and in 2nd RD, defeated No. 20 Stepanek in five sets...In last three rounds en route to final, posted Top 10 wins over No. 3 Roddick (4th), No. 8 Ljubicic in five sets (QF) and No. 4 Nalbandian (SF)...Lost first two sets against Nalbandian before rallying to win 6-4 in fifth...Afterwards, climbed to No. 27...In March, advanced to his first ATP Masters Series QF in Indian Wells, defeating No. 8 Gaudio (3rd) and Berdych (4th) before losing to No. 2 Nadal...Then followed with 3rd RD showing in Miami (l. to Davydenko)...In first clay court tournament in Houston, retired in 2nd RD with a back injury to Spadea...Surpassed his previous match wins total in first four months of action with a 15-7 mark...Withdrew from next two events before returning to AMS Rome in May...Compiled a 3-4 record on clay, picking up first career win at Roland Garros (d. Portas)...On grass, reached SF at ‘s-Hertogenbosch and Wimbledon...Defeated Mackin in five sets for first career victory at Wimbledon, and also posted wins over Grosjean, Murray and Hewitt before losing to Nadal...Broke Top 10 following his Wimbledon success and spent 13 weeks in Top 10...Made debut at summer AMS events with 1st RD exit in Toronto and 3rd RD finish in Cincinnati...Also reached 3rd RD in New Haven...Fell to Agassi 7-5 in fifth set in 2nd RD at US Open and was American’s last career win...In next tournament in Beijing, captured first ATP title (d. Ancic) and then injured his right shoulder after suffering a fall in practice in Bangkok...Withdrew from Bangkok and Tokyo...Went 1-3 rest of season...Compiled records of 22-12 on hard, 8-3 on grass and 7-4 on clay...Posted a career-best five Top 10 wins (5-6) and surpassed $1 million in a season for first time.
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Post by getta on Feb 11, 2010 11:30:16 GMT -5
www.atpworldtour.com/Tennis/Players/Top-Players/Marcos-Baghdatis.aspxCAREER HIGHLIGHTS2007 -- Finished in Top 20 for second straight year highlighted by second ATP title in Zagreb (d. No. 8 Ljubicic) while reaching two other finals -- Marseille (l. to Simon) and Halle (l. to Berdych). Won a career-high 48 matches and advanced to his first ATP Masters Series SF in Paris (l. to Nadal). Also QF in Doha and Sydney. On clay, advanced to SF in Munich (l. to Kohlschreiber) and 4th RD at Roland Garros (l. to Andreev).On grass, reached final in Halle and QF at Wimbledon (d. Nalbandian, Davydenko, l. to Djokovic in five sets). Compiled 10-5 mark to finish year, reaching QF in Beijing and SF in Basel and AMS Paris (d. Ljubicic, No. 4 Davydenko and No. 8 Robredo, l. to Nadal in three sets). 2008 --The Cypriot was limited to 12 tournaments and fell to No. 100 due to injuries during season...His best results were SF in Marseille (l. to Ancic) in February and QF in Halle (l. to Federer) in June...In January, reached 3rd RD at Australian Open where he lost a four hour, 45 minute five-set marathon that finished at 4:34 a.m. to Hewitt...In June, advanced to 4th RD at Wimbledon (l. to Lopez 8-6 in fifth set) and then was sidelined for two months with a stress fracture in right wrist...Returned week of Sept. 8 and reached SF at Orleans Challenger (retired with back injury vs. C. Rochus)...Also retired in two of his last three tournaments in Metz and AMS Paris with back ailment...In doubles, reached first ATP final in Chennai (w/Gicquel). 2009 -- The Cypriot returned to year-end Top 50 by capturing his third career ATP World Tour title and collecting three Challenger titles (14-1 record)…In October in Stockholm, defeated Belgian Rochus for his first ATP title since February 2007…The previous week in Tashkent he collected his third Challenger title of year, beating Istomin… He also won titles in Vancouver in August and St. Remy in September, defeating Malisse in both…In February, he advanced to QFs in ATP World Tour tournaments in Johannesburg (l. to Ferrer) and Delray Beach (l. to Chardy)…Compiled marks of 21-12 on hard, 2-2 on grass and 0-2 on clay.
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Post by getta on Feb 11, 2010 11:31:29 GMT -5
www.atpworldtour.com/Tennis/Players/Top-Players/Marcos-Baghdatis.aspxYEAR IN REVIEW2010Began season at Brisbane, losing to Berdych in 2nd RD…Following week at Sydney, he dedicated his fourth ATP World Tour title to his brother after beating Gasquet 64 76(2)..."It's my brother's birthday and I wanted to win for him also," said Baghdatis. "It's been two years tough for him. So I'm very happy that I won today and can dedicate this win to him." It was the second unseeded Sydney final in the past three years…Baghdatis donated $5,000 of his prize money to the World Vision Australia Haiti Earthquake Appeal. “The situation in Haiti is really, really sad,” he said. “I have seen the pictures on the news and it is just horrific. I want to send my condolences to everyone affected by the earthquake.” Rose 11 places to No. 31 in ATP Rankings...At the Australian Open, he beat Lorenzi and No. 17 seed Ferrer before his seven-match winning streak came to an end when he retired with a right should injury when trailing No. 22 seed Hewitt 60 42 ret. to be continued...
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Post by getta on Feb 22, 2010 18:48:01 GMT -5
this article was published in a Cypriot newspaper in 2006. sadly all links are inactive now, but luckily enough the author Constantine Markides also posted it to his blog. i think that there is no better place to post it than here.  i bolded the parts that struck me.================================================================ and so here we go: www.fourthnight.com/2006/02/baghdatis-cypriot-tennis/Why Baghdatis Matters: The Importance of Being Cypriotby Constantine Markides  Baghdatis at Cyprus-Finland Davis Cup match ‘06.
Added retroactivelyTHE LAST half of January may prove to have been the most significant period in terms of the Cyprus Problem since the 2004 referendum on reunifying the island based on the Annan Plan. Not because of any ‘renewed talks’ between bureaucrats on each side of the Green Line; nor because of any new initiatives or interventions from the US, UK or UN; but because an unseeded 20-year old Cypriot named Marcos Baghdatis advanced to the Australian Open Final. It may seem implausible that an affable 20-year old tennis player—who has the facial malleability and expressiveness of a standup comic, who chastises himself after bad shots with haunted heavenward gazes, and who routinely dives after impossible balls—has much to do with the Cyprus Problem, that decades-long bog of barbed wire and army camps, displaced properties and security fears. But he does. Though the military occupation of the north is the outward symptom of the Cyprus Problem, the underlying disease is an identity crisis: Cyprus suffers from a dearth of Cypriot pride and an excess of Greek and Turkish nationalism.The bulk of the violence Cyprus has experienced in recent history is rooted in an insecurity complex (akin to the Napoleonic one) fomented by devout generals and halitotic parliamentarians. The only true Cypriot is the donkey, to use the words of former Turkish Cypriot strongman Rauf Denktash, and so it follows that the supreme bliss in this mortal coil is to be diffused into the great motherland of Greece or Turkey, depending on which side of the Green Line you fall. For decades Cypriots have faithfully obeyed their BMW-driving shepherds by waving the foreign flags, parroting the tedious slogans that have been spray painted onto crumbling walls for the past half century, and of course gingerly avoiding any associations with the word ‘Cypriot’ so as not to be frowned upon as an anti-Greek or anti-Turkish traitor. Now enter young Baghdatis. Open a late January 2006 Cypriot newspaper and you will read something like “Hero Baghdatis has achieved what no Cypriot has ever achieved before!” referring to his riveting, not-for-cardiacs Auzzie Final advance in which he usurped three of the world’s top-ten ranked players. But he is also heroic for another equally titanic achievement: Baghdatis speaks of his love for his home country, Cyprus, without then qualifying that love by subsuming it within a mother nation. It is rare to find Cyprus-pride. The more common sentiment is reflected by the decision last month of ‘Cypriot’ singer Anna Vissi to represent Greece instead of Cyprus at the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest. Baghdatis’ love of Cyprus is no recent phenomenon. Four years ago, when he won his Junior US Open Semifinals, delighted fans tossed Greek flags down onto the court at his feet. But 16-year old Baghdatis instead went to the stands, took a Cyprus flag from a fan and, draping it around himself, began jogging around the court. He later turned down a request to play for the French tennis federation and another to play for Greece during the Athens Olympics out of loyalty to Cyprus. And when he could no longer wear the Cyprus flag on the front of his shirt due to a new Adidas sponsorship, he made sure that the shirt he wore was in the white and orange-gold colors of the Cyprus flag. Baghdatis is not Cypriot in the ‘purebred’ sense. His father moved from Lebanon to Cyprus in 1973 to work at a cement factory, later marrying a Greek Cypriot and being christened Christos. [1] And young Marcos himself left Cyprus when he was 14 to train at a tennis academy in France. It is a strange fact that those who live outside Cyprus for a large period, or those who immigrate to Cyprus, often feel more Cypriot-in-the-bones than lifelong islanders. It is likely due to the thoroughness with which Greek and Turkish nationalism engulf the island. Baghdatis created a furor in the tennis world after he knocked out world number three Andy Roddick from the Australian Open (the fact that an unseeded player named ‘Baghdatis beat the top US player could have made good propaganda for the resistance in Iraq, but as far as I know no one in Iraq has picked up on it). Suddenly the words “Cypriot” and “Cyprus” were on the back page of newspapers all over the world. The international attention took Cyprus by surprise. Like all small places, the news in Cyprus ends at its borders; explosions in Iraq or floods in New Orleans are mere background to the crucial daily pontifications of the government spokesman. Likewise, the local news in Cyprus is generally of no interest anywhere else. The rest of the world does not care about the 13th round of negotiations between the Cyprus Airways Board and the unions, or the potato farmers’ latest plans to descend upon the Presidential in tractors, or the 85th article in five months explaining that the investigations into the August 14 Helios plane crash in a mountainside in Greece that killed all 121 on board are—just in case you were wondering since yesterday—still underway. But suddenly unseeded Cypriot Baghdatis knocks out three world top-ten players—Andy Roddick, Ivan Ljubicic and, after a two-set deficit, David Nalbandian—to make it to the Australian Open Final, earning him the titles ‘never-say-die Baghdatis,’ the ‘giant-killer’ and ‘the smiling assassin.’ Suddenly, the world was talking about this new flamboyant talent from… Cyprus. It may at last be the beginning of the end of Cypriots having to gently explain that, no, Cyprus bears no relation to the tree or to the Florida theme park and, no, we are not called Cyprusians.  Cypriots have never before given a d**n about tennis. Sporting passion on the island has always been for football. But after Baghdatis beat Andy Roddick and advanced to the quarterfinals, the island, or at least the Greek Cypriot side, went into a tennis mania, though it was mostly a Baghdatis mania. His success may in fact help to break the stranglehold that political parties currently wield in athletics since, unlike with Cypriot football teams, tennis players are not affiliated with a certain party. By the time Baghdatis upset two more top-10 players to advance to the final to challenge world number one Roger Federer, the young man had became a hero, a celebrity and, as the government spokesman called him, a ‘worthy ambassador.’ There aren’t many internationally recognizable Cypriots. For the real luminaries one must go back a few thousand years. There you find the philosophical, mythological, and biblical heavyweights like stoic Zeno of Kitium, lust goddess Aphrodite, and never-say-die Lazarus, who while not Cypriot by birth, could be considered Cypriot by rebirth, since he moved to Cyprus and became Kittim bishop after his resurrection. But Cyprus does have its modern pin-ups. Archbishop Makarios, Rauf Denktash, Cat Stevens, George Michael and the most recent addition, Marcos Baghdatis, are a few who come to mind. Of those five, Baghdatis seems the closest to a Cypriot patriot. In part this is by process of elimination. Makarios was more of a Hellenist than a Cypriot, while Denktash, with his memorable donkey assertion, was more of a pan-Turkist; Cat Stevens, who soon became Yusuf Islam, felt more loyalties to the Muslim nation than the Cypriot one; and George Michael, though a proud Cypriot in his early days, had a falling out with the island upon realizing that Cypriots, like their cousins to the west, may rhapsodize about the greatness and glory of the ancient Greeks, but they do not approve of all of their practices, especially their pedagogical method. It is hard to describe just how exciting and nerve-racking Baghdatis’ last few games were for Cypriots. Baghdatis’ mother developed stomach pains from the stress, which got so severe after her son collapsed with a leg cramp in the fourth set against Federer that she had to be rushed to a clinic. Even the Cypriot tennis announcers, who are supposed to at least maintain the illusion of unbiased reporting, were calling Baghdatis “our Marcos,” pleading for Federer to commit errors, shouting jubilantly when Federer did error, and regularly appealing to God and Mother Mary. But at least there was no pretense about it. At one point one of the announcers even asked forgiveness of his viewers for having lost all vestiges of professionalism.But the announcers were mild compared to the average viewer in Cyprus. I watched the final with about two-dozen friends and relatives. For the sake of brevity, here is an example of how just one of them—Kosta—responded on any given point:
Baghdatis bounces the ball for his first serve. “Come on Marco, my bird, my braveheart,” says Kosta, sitting just in front of me. Baghdatis nets it. Kosta bows his head and crosses himself three times. Second serve is in, Federer returns it, Marcos hits a short crosscourt backhand. “Not so short!” Kosta cries. Federer goes down the line, Marcos returns on the run and Federer, now at the net, coolly volleys a winner. “You stinking, nuts-covered frigid ass!” Kosta cries at Federer, thrusting an open hand like a karate chop towards the screen. The announcer, meanwhile, is saying that exhaustion has finally caught up to Baghdatis and it’s looking like the match will go to Federer (this is Eurosport now, so no pro-Baghdatis bias). “Shut up! What do you know!” Kosta cries in response. Baghdatis is up for his first serve. “Come on, Baghdatara,” Kosta says, then goes silent and, bowing his head, crosses himself three times…
I have never before felt such nerves over an athletic event I was not competing in, nor ever been so lastingly affected by the outcome. I am still haunted by the second set (anyone who saw the match knows what I mean, oh cruel universe). Never again can I mock others for the despair and ecstasy that a televised sports event can induce in them without considering myself a hypocrite.Despite the loss to Federer, Cyprus celebrated, with some even taking to the streets after the match. In his village “Paramytha” (meaning ‘fairytale,’ appropriately) one could hear the jubilant shooting of rifles. The celebrations continue a week later. Baghdatis was due to arrive at the Larnaca airport about two hours ago (4 pm, February 4). I imagine it has been quite an event seeing that the Larnaca mayor called on the people of Larnaca—of which there are about 65,000—to show up at the airport. To catapult into tennis headlines Baghdatis had to defy more odds than most. He is one of those rare tennis players who rose, not only out of tennis backwater Cyprus, but also from a working-class background. Even after becoming junior world number one, he received practically no help from the government (which is now inviting him to the Presidential) for his huge tennis Academy debts. Their only award for him was a mandatory military term that would interrupt his tennis career. The government granted him a postponement only after two newspapers on the island—the Cyprus Mail and Politis—made a stink about it. Baghdatis at ‘06 Davis Cup.
Image added retroactively.Despite the lack of help, Baghdatis continued to wear his Cyprus colors and wave his Cyprus flag. Maybe he held no grudges against the Cyprus government, or maybe he could make the distinction between the state and the country, between the bureaucrats and the populace, a distinction not commonly made in Cyprus, especially when referring to certain neighboring countries. After holding up his runner-up silver plate, which as my cousin said, would be good for serving kourabiedes (traditional Greek pastries), Baghdatis thanked everyone in Cyprus who was watching him. He did not make a distinction as to what kind of Cypriots. It may seem a minor point but it is important. I know Turkish Cypriots who wept when Baghdatis lost to Federer precisely because of his staunch Cypriotness. Baghdatis matters precisely because, in an island in which ethnic fervor has paved the way for troops and real estate developers to muscle their way about, we need more smiling proud Cypriots.It would be a mistake to think that Baghdatis snubs Greece. Baghdatis has his blue-and-white Hellas fan club who attend his matches and infuriate his opponents with their football-style rowdiness, which include weird chants like “Hey Marcos, you’re crazy, you’re crazy with you’re white t-shirt” and more mainstream political chants like “Greece OLE Cyprus OLE Enosis OLE Enosis OLE Enosis OLE” (ENOSIS means the union of Greece and Cyprus). Baghdatis may revel in his entourage and he reciprocates their support with free tickets, but that does not mean he shares all of their sentiments. Of course, there is a kinship between Greek Cypriots and Greeks, just as there is between Turkish Cypriots and Turks (and, though less recognized, between Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots), which has deep historical roots and is reflected in the language, religion, etc. But though Baghdatis or any other Cypriot may clink beer mugs with his Greek friends and exult over Greece’s victory in the 2004 Euro, it does not mean that he must say he is a Greek first and a Cypriot second, or that ‘Greek Cypriot’ is just a synonym for ‘Greek’.Nationalism is an ugly word and an even uglier thing, but Cyprus, which must surely be one of the most nationalistic places on earth, would not be harmed by a little more of it—just so long as it is not of the Turkish or Greek variety. A few more Cyprus Republic flags, a few more swellings of Cypriot pride, a few more patriotic ambassadors like Baghdatis and that invasive species known as the Cyprus Problem might finally bugger off for good. The donkey is not the only true Cypriot. But even if it were, better to be a proud donkey than an ass trying to be a stallion. Constantine Markides ================================================================ [1] Baghdatis’ father also hellenised his surname. His original surname was Baghdadi. Christos Baghdatis, Marcos' father, in an interview he gave during the Australian Open 2006 days said that his ancestors emigrated from Iran (an Iranese region very near to the Iraqi borders) to Lebanon. They were Arabs of course, not Persians. Baghdadi is an Arabic meaning "from Baghdad".
Unfortunately I don’t know Marcos’ father’s Muslim first name before he changed it into Christos when he converted to Christianity…
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Post by getta on Feb 23, 2010 0:09:40 GMT -5
Marcos returned to a triumphant reception in Cyprus, after reaching the Australian Open final in 2006.
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Post by getta on Mar 22, 2010 4:57:32 GMT -5
updatedwww.atpworldtour.com/Tennis/Players/Top-Players/Marcos-Baghdatis.aspxPERSONALBegan playing tennis at age five. Played with his father and two older brothers, Marinos and Petros, who played Davis Cup. Father Christos owns a clothing store in Cyprus... Mother's name is Andry…Has a younger sister Zena, who was adopted when she was one month old…No. 1 junior in 2003 with Australian Open juniors title and runner-up at US Open juniors in 2002-03…Won nine junior titles. Prefers hard courts. Considers himself a baseliner, with his serve and his forehand his biggest weapons…Biggest idol as a kid was Patrick Rafter, but also looked up to Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras…Enjoys playing and watching soccer. Favourite soccer team is Apollo in Cyprus…"Man of the Year" in Cyprus in 2005…Has trained at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in Paris on an Olympic Solidarity Youth Development Programme Scholarship since age 13…Has a 51-13 career Davis Cup record (36-3 in singles) in 34 ties…Coached by Argentine Eduardo Infantino (since Roland Garros in 2009). YEAR IN REVIEW2010Began season at Brisbane, losing to Berdych in 2nd RD…Following week at Sydney, he dedicated his fourth ATP World Tour title to his brother after beating Gasquet 64 76(2)..."It's my brother's birthday and I wanted to win for him also," said Baghdatis. "It's been two years tough for him. So I'm very happy that I won today and can dedicate this win to him." It was the second unseeded Sydney final in the past three years…Baghdatis donated $5,000 of his prize money to the World Vision Australia Haiti Earthquake Appeal. “The situation in Haiti is really, really sad,” he said. “I have seen the pictures on the news and it is just horrific. I want to send my condolences to everyone affected by the earthquake.” Rose 11 places to No. 31 in ATP Rankings...At the Australian Open, he beat Lorenzi and No. 17 seed Ferrer before his seven-match winning streak came to an end when he retired with a right should injury when trailing No. 22 seed Hewitt 60 42 ret... In February, as World No. 37 beat Simon, Devvarman and Berrer to reach Dubai SFs where he lost to second seed Djokovic 67(2) 63 64 in 2 hrs and 56 mins... Rose four places to World No. 33 on 1 March... In March, at Indian Wells recorded "best win of my career" over top seed Federer 57 75 76(4) in 3rd RD, coming back from a 1-4 third-set deficit and saving three match points...He had lost his first six encounters versus Federer, afterwards he told the crowd, "Seven is my lucky number"...Prior to the win, the highest-ranked opponent he had defeated was then-World No. 3 Roddick in 2006 Australian Open 4th RD...In the next round, fell to No. 18 seed Robredo 75 06 64... to be continued...
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Post by getta on May 6, 2010 17:24:18 GMT -5
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Post by getta on Aug 24, 2010 3:54:57 GMT -5
updatedwww.atpworldtour.com/Tennis/Players/Top-Players/Marcos-Baghdatis.aspxPERSONALBegan playing tennis at age five. Played with his father and two older brothers, Marinos and Petros, who played Davis Cup. Father Christos owns a clothing store in Cyprus...Mother's name is Andry…Has a younger sister Zena, who was adopted when she was one month old…No. 1 junior in 2003 with Australian Open juniors title and runner-up at US Open juniors in 2002-03…Won nine junior titles. Prefers hard courts. Considers himself a baseliner, with his serve and his forehand his biggest weapons…Biggest idol as a kid was Patrick Rafter, but also looked up to Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras…Enjoys playing and watching soccer. Favourite soccer team is Apollo in Cyprus…"Man of the Year" in Cyprus in 2005…Has trained at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in Paris on an Olympic Solidarity Youth Development Programme Scholarship since age 13…Has a 54-13 career Davis Cup record (38-3 in singles) in 35 ties…Coach is Guillaume Peyre (since July 2010), physical trainer is Roberto Yunis Paez Ruiz and physiotherapist is Diego Martos. YEAR IN REVIEW2010Began season at Brisbane, losing to Berdych in 2nd RD…Following week at Sydney, he dedicated his fourth ATP World Tour title to his brother after beating Gasquet 64 76(2)..."It's my brother's birthday and I wanted to win for him also," said Baghdatis. "It's been two years tough for him. So I'm very happy that I won today and can dedicate this win to him." It was the second unseeded Sydney final in the past three years…Baghdatis donated $5,000 of his prize money to the World Vision Australia Haiti Earthquake Appeal. “The situation in Haiti is really, really sad,” he said. “I have seen the pictures on the news and it is just horrific. I want to send my condolences to everyone affected by the earthquake.” Rose 11 places to No. 31 in ATP Rankings...At the Australian Open, he beat Lorenzi and No. 17 seed Ferrer before his seven-match winning streak came to an end when he retired with a right should injury when trailing No. 22 seed Hewitt 60 42 ret... In February, as World No. 37 beat Simon, Devvarman and Berrer to reach Dubai SFs where he lost to second seed Djokovic 67(2) 63 64 in 2 hrs and 56 mins... Rose four places to World No. 33 on 1 March... In March, at Indian Wells recorded "best win of my career" over top seed Federer 57 75 76(4) in 3rd RD, coming back from a 1-4 third-set deficit and saving three match points...He had lost his first six encounters versus Federer, afterwards he told the crowd, "Seven is my lucky number"...Prior to the win, the highest-ranked opponent he had defeated was then-World No. 3 Roddick in 2006 Australian Open 4th RD...In the next round, fell to No. 18 seed Robredo 75 06 64...As No. 25 seed in Miami, beat Chela before losing to No. 7 seed Cilic 63 64 in 3rd RD... Endured two first-round losses in Monte-Carlo and Rome at the start of the European clay-court swing before advancing to the semi-finals in Munich (l. to Cilic)…Fell second round to David Ferrer the following week in Madrid, having held match point in the third set before succumbing 61 36 57…Advanced to the quarter-finals in Nice (l. to Mayer) before posting third-round effort at Roland Garros, losing in four sets to World No. 4 Andy Murray… Went winless through the grass-court season, losing in the opening round in Halle (l. to Petzschner), ‘s-Hertogenbosch (l. to Luczak) and Wimbledon (l. to Lacko), and afterwards parted company with coach Eduardo Infantino… Reunited with former coach, Guillaume Peyre, in time for the Olympus US Open Series and began with a quarter-final showing in Atlanta (l. to Tipsarevic)… Following week in Washington D.C., seeded eighth, he reached his first ATP World Tour final on US soil, defeating World No. 10 Fernando Verdasco in the quarter-finals before finishing runner-up to David Nalbandian 26 67(4)…"I will never forget where I come from. I was ranked 150 last year and now I touched Top 20 this year. I am looking forward to the future and playing better"...Afterwards he rose to World No. 20... At ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Cincinnati in mid-August, reaching the SFs after win over World No. 13 Cilic, No. 25 Bellucci, No. 7 Berdych and World No. 1 Nadal (64 46 64, firing 18 aces in 2 hours, 32 minutes)…His last ATP World Tour Masters 1000 semi-final came at Paris in November 2007…On 23 August, rose to World No. 18… to be continued...
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Post by Giatros on Aug 30, 2010 13:58:09 GMT -5
....... You can now add, Marcos' Book !!!  Buy Marcos’ Book :( www.baghdatis.com/articles/view/buy-marcos-book ) Just in time for the US Open, you can now buy Marcos’ Official Autobiography online at www.baghdatis.com. The book is priced at €14.99 EUR plus postage and packing. Written when Marcos was 21, after his tremendous 2006 season, it is a must read. Through his book, Marcos, wanted to share with his fans how he has developed as a sportsman and a person. He explains how his pure will and desire enabled him to become one of the best players in the world. Leaving Cyprus at such a young age meant Marcos endured a difficult path to the top, which has made him a stronger individual. In his book he gives a testimony about his private and professional life wrought with honesty. Get your copy now ! Stay tuned to the www.baghdatis.com online shop over the coming months as we add more products.
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Post by getta on Sept 3, 2010 23:33:14 GMT -5
Written when Marcos was 21, after his tremendous 2006 season, it is a must read. back then, a delighted Marcos was cruising to crushing his opponents... i think that the second volume that takes us through Marcos' middle years is far more interesting, the volume where Marcos details his efforts to intellectualise the beckoning black hole that pain created... the third volume where it is clearly shown that Marcos' influence - not only in the field of sport - in Cyprus was always being felt and its value cannot be estimated by ordinary standards of success should be classed as a must read too. |
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Post by Giatros on Sept 4, 2010 1:23:59 GMT -5
Written when Marcos was 21, after his tremendous 2006 season, it is a must read. back then, a delighted Marcos was cruising to crushing his opponents... i think that the second volume that takes us through Marcos' middle years is far more interesting, the volume where Marcos details his efforts to intellectualise the beckoning black hole that pain created... the third volume where it is clearly shown that Marcos' influence - not only in the field of sport - in Cyprus was always being felt and its value cannot be estimated by ordinary standards of success should be classed as a must read too. Well said, Getta .......  |
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Post by getta on Jan 3, 2011 8:15:33 GMT -5
PERSONALBegan playing tennis at age five. Played with his father and two older brothers, Marinos and Petros, who played Davis Cup. Father Christos owns a clothing store in Cyprus...Mother's name is Andry…Has a younger sister Zena, who was adopted when she was one month old…No. 1 junior in 2003 with Australian Open juniors title and runner-up at US Open juniors in 2002-03…Won nine junior titles. Prefers hard courts. Considers himself a baseliner, with his serve and his forehand his biggest weapons…Biggest idol as a kid was Patrick Rafter, but also looked up to Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras…Enjoys playing and watching soccer. Favourite soccer team is Apollo in Cyprus…"Man of the Year" in Cyprus in 2005…Has trained at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in Paris on an Olympic Solidarity Youth Development Programme Scholarship since age 13…Has a 54-13 career Davis Cup record (38-3 in singles) in 35 ties…Coach is Guillaume Peyre (since July 2010), physical trainer is Roberto Yunis Paez Ruiz and physiotherapist is Diego Martos. PERSONAL Began playing tennis at age five. Played with his father and two older brothers, Marinos and Petros, who played Davis Cup. Father Christos owns a clothing store in Cyprus...Mother's name is Andry…Has a younger sister Zena, who was adopted when she was one month old…No. 1 junior in 2003 with Australian Open juniors title and runner-up at US Open juniors in 2002-03…Won nine junior titles. Prefers hard courts. Considers himself a baseliner, with his serve and his forehand his biggest weapons…Biggest idol as a kid was Patrick Rafter, but also looked up to Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras…Enjoys playing and watching soccer. Favourite soccer team is Apollo in Cyprus…"Man of the Year" in Cyprus in 2005…Has trained at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in Paris on an Olympic Solidarity Youth Development Programme Scholarship since age 13…Going into 2010 has a 54-13 career Davis Cup record (38-3 in singles) in 35 ties…Coach is Guillaume Peyre (since July 2010), physio is Diego Martes and trainer is Andreas Nicolaou. CAREER HIGHLIGHTS2007 -- Finished in Top 20 for second straight year highlighted by second ATP title in Zagreb (d. No. 8 Ljubicic) while reaching two other finals -- Marseille (l. to Simon) and Halle (l. to Berdych). Won a career-high 48 matches and advanced to his first ATP Masters Series SF in Paris (l. to Nadal). Also QF in Doha and Sydney. On clay, advanced to SF in Munich (l. to Kohlschreiber) and 4th RD at Roland Garros (l. to Andreev).On grass, reached final in Halle and QF at Wimbledon (d. Nalbandian, Davydenko, l. to Djokovic in five sets). Compiled 10-5 mark to finish year, reaching QF in Beijing and SF in Basel and AMS Paris (d. Ljubicic, No. 4 Davydenko and No. 8 Robredo, l. to Nadal in three sets). 2008 --The Cypriot was limited to 12 tournaments and fell to No. 100 due to injuries during season...His best results were SF in Marseille (l. to Ancic) in February and QF in Halle (l. to Federer) in June...In January, reached 3rd RD at Australian Open where he lost a four hour, 45 minute five-set marathon that finished at 4:34 a.m. to Hewitt...In June, advanced to 4th RD at Wimbledon (l. to Lopez 8-6 in fifth set) and then was sidelined for two months with a stress fracture in right wrist...Returned week of Sept. 8 and reached SF at Orleans Challenger (retired with back injury vs. C. Rochus)...Also retired in two of his last three tournaments in Metz and AMS Paris with back ailment...In doubles, reached first ATP final in Chennai (w/Gicquel). 2009 -- The Cypriot returned to year-end Top 50 by capturing his third career ATP World Tour title and collecting three Challenger titles (14-1 record)…In October in Stockholm, defeated Belgian Rochus for his first ATP title since February 2007…The previous week in Tashkent he collected his third Challenger title of year, beating Istomin… He also won titles in Vancouver in August and St. Remy in September, defeating Malisse in both…In February, he advanced to QFs in ATP World Tour tournaments in Johannesburg (l. to Ferrer) and Delray Beach (l. to Chardy)…Compiled marks of 21-12 on hard, 2-2 on grass and 0-2 on clay. CAREER HIGHLIGHTS 2010 -- The Cypriot finished in Top 20 for first time in three years and won fourth career title…Reached QFs or better 11 times…Won title in Sydney (d. Hewitt, Fish and Gasquet in last three rounds)…Donated $5,000 of his prize money to the World Vision Australia Haiti Earthquake Appeal...Runner-up in Washington (l. to Nalbandian) and Moscow (l. to Troicki)…Only player in 2010 to beat Nadal and Federer while they were No. 1…In March, saved three match points in three-sets win over No. 1 Federer in 3rd RD in Indian Wells*…In August, beat No. 1 Nadal in Cincinnati* QF en route to SF (l. to Federer)…Shoulder injury sidelined him in October...Was 35-18 on hard and 8-6 on clay. |
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Post by getta on Aug 24, 2011 22:14:50 GMT -5
updatedwww.atpworldtour.com/Tennis/Players/Top-Players/Marcos-Baghdatis.aspxPERSONALBegan playing tennis at age five. Played with his father and two older brothers, Marinos and Petros, who played Davis Cup. Father Christos owns a clothing store in Cyprus...Mother's name is Andry…Has a younger sister Zena, who was adopted when she was one month old…No. 1 junior in 2003 with Australian Open juniors title and runner-up at US Open juniors in 2002-03…Won nine junior titles. Prefers hard courts. Considers himself a baseliner, with his serve and his forehand his biggest weapons…Biggest idol as a kid was Patrick Rafter, but also looked up to Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras…Enjoys playing and watching soccer. Favourite soccer team is Apollo in Cyprus…"Man of the Year" in Cyprus in 2005…Has trained at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in Paris on an Olympic Solidarity Youth Development Programme Scholarship since age 13… Coach is Miles Maclagan (since July 2011), physio is Diego Martes.
YEAR IN REVIEW2011The Cypriot began the year at World No. 20...He reached two quarter-finals in his first three tournaments at Brisbane (l. to Roddick) and Rotterdam (d. World No. 5 Murray in 1sr RD; l. to Ljubicic)...Make a 3rd RD exit at the Australian Open (l. to Melzer)... Saw a six-match losing streak end at Munich (d. Benneteau; l. to Dimitrov) at the end of April...Went 3-7 on the spring European clay swing, culminating in a Roland Garros 2nd RD loss to Leonardo Mayer... During grass swing, reached the 's-Hertogenbosch SFs (l. to Dodig) and Wimbledon 3rd RD (l. to Djokovic)... Highlights on US summer hard-court swing was run to Washington QFs (l. to Young)...On 22 August, dropped to World No. 60...
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Post by getta on Oct 16, 2011 21:39:04 GMT -5
updatedwww.atpworldtour.com/Tennis/Players/Top-Players/Marcos-Baghdatis.aspxYEAR IN REVIEW2011The Cypriot began the year at World No. 20...He reached two quarter-finals in his first three tournaments at Brisbane (l. to Roddick) and Rotterdam (d. World No. 5 Murray in 1sr RD; l. to Ljubicic)...Make a 3rd RD exit at the Australian Open (l. to Melzer)... Saw a six-match losing streak end at Munich (d. Benneteau; l. to Dimitrov) at the end of April...Went 3-7 on the spring European clay swing, culminating in a Roland Garros 2nd RD loss to Leonardo Mayer... During grass swing, reached the 's-Hertogenbosch SFs (l. to Dodig) and Wimbledon 3rd RD (l. to Djokovic)... Highlights on US summer hard-court swing were runs to QFs at Washington (l. to Young) and Winston-Salem (l. to Isner)...Lost to Isner in US Open 1st RD... On 2 October, lost to Tipsarevic 64 75 in the Kuala Lumpur final... to be continued...
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Post by getta on Jul 30, 2012 18:51:35 GMT -5
PERSONALBegan playing tennis at age five. Played with his father and two older brothers, Marinos and Petros, who played Davis Cup. Father Christos owns a clothing store in Cyprus...Mother's name is Andry…Has a younger sister Zena, who was adopted when she was one month old…No. 1 junior in 2003 with Australian Open juniors title and runner-up at US Open juniors in 2002-03…Won nine junior titles. Prefers hard courts. Considers himself a baseliner, with his serve and his forehand his biggest weapons…Biggest idol as a kid was Patrick Rafter, but also looked up to Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras…Enjoys playing and watching soccer. Favourite soccer team is Apollo in Cyprus…"Man of the Year" in Cyprus in 2005…Has trained at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in Paris on an Olympic Solidarity Youth Development Programme Scholarship since age 13… Coach is Miles Maclagan (since July 2011), physio is Diego Martes. Began playing tennis at age five. Played with his father and two older brothers, Marinos and Petros, who played Davis Cup. Father Christos owns a clothing store in Cyprus...Mother's name is Andry…Has a younger sister Zena, who was adopted when she was one month old…No. 1 junior in 2003 with Australian Open juniors title and runner-up at US Open juniors in 2002-03…Won nine junior titles. Prefers hard courts. Considers himself a baseliner, with his serve and his forehand his biggest weapons…Biggest idol as a kid was Patrick Rafter, but also looked up to Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras…Enjoys playing and watching soccer. Favourite soccer team is Apollo in Cyprus…"Man of the Year" in Cyprus in 2005…Has trained at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in Paris on an Olympic Solidarity Youth Development Programme Scholarship since age 13… Coach is Yiannos Hajigeorgiou (since July 2012), physio is Davor Lukic...Wife, Karolina (Sprem) is a WTA Tour player...They married on 14 July in Croatia. |
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