Safina explains the reasons why she ended up “burned” from tennis

Dinara Safina was one of the great rackets on the WTA circuit during the 2000s, when the Russian, sister of the also tennis player Marat Safin, managed to reach the finals of Roland Garros in 2008 and 2009 and the Australian Open in 2009 in addition to reaching number 1 in the WTA ranking in April of that year. However, Safina's promising career came to a sudden halt in 2011, when she played her last professional match at the Mutua Madrid Open before hanging up the racket at just 25 years old.

Now 34, Safina is still linked to the world of tennis as a link between the players and the organizers at the ATP and WTA tournaments in St. Petersburg and in an interview with Tennis.com she wanted to reveal some of the reasons for her withdrawal. “I spent a lot of time with myself. I needed it, I have learned to be more patient and also more flexible because if I have a plan A and it doesn't work I have a plan B, and if not, a plan C. In tennis I was always worried and wanted everything to be perfect. She was a perfectionist and that mindset can be very exhausting, to the point of burning you out. That's what happened to me, so I'm learning to be more flexible, more tolerant, and not just stick to one specific thing. If it works well. If not, I'll try to blame myself less. I can still wonder why there was something that did not work, but now I do it more as a way of learning than as a form of guilt. “

Safina also took the opportunity to analyze the growth of players like Naomi Osaka and her great performance at the recent Australian Open. “Serena had her chances in the first set but the match was balanced, Naomi raised her level. Serena was playing amazing but Naomi knew how to hold her back. He understood that Serena was playing her best tennis but had the confidence to know that she wouldn't continue like this. It was like 'I can play my best tennis for three hours, can you match my level that time?'I think it all depends on the personality in those moments. Either you love it or you don't. Either you go for it or the doubts begin. “

The former tennis player also showed her enthusiasm for the rise of Russian tennis in the figures of Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev. “I think it's in Russian blood. We are very emotional people and we take things very personally. I think we have a great atmosphere because everyone is pushing themselves to the limit. It's the same thing that happened when we played Myskina, Dementieva, Zvonareva, Sharapova and Kuzntesova: we pushed each other to play our best tennis and improve. They are good friends and between both of them they demand to the maximum “.

Finally Safina also wanted to reveal the perspective of what the coronavirus pandemic looks like through the organization of a tennis tournament. “It is very hard to have to stay in the hotel all day and not be allowed to leave except for your matches. You cannot talk to anyone so, during that time, you are nervous because you do not know if you have caught the virus. There is a lot of pressure when you travel, talk to someone or go out for a walk, throughout the tournament they think they can test positive at any time and would have to quit. From the point of view of the organizers there is also a lot of responsibility, the staff have to think about things that they had not thought before and there are small details that depend on the protocol. They are totally new things that you have to learn from and you start asking yourself 'What can I do?' But i love being here. When I go out on the track I realize how much I enjoy giving advice, sharing my experience and helping the youngest. I can work with professionals or with people who have not played tennis before and I would feel the same. “