“It feels amazing. It’s the first time I’ve won the same title twice. I’m really happy. I don’t know what else to say,” beamed a jubilant Andrey Rublev after clinching a thrilling 7-5, 5-7, 6-1 win over Jack Draper to lift his second Qatar Open title. But the tides seem to have turned since then. The Russian ace has stumbled, enduring early exits in three straight tournaments as he heads into the clay season searching for answers! In a bold move to snap the slump, Rublev has now turned to two-time GS champion Marat Safin, sparking a buzz-worthy coaching saga. Weighing on this new coaching partnership, the American tennis icon Jimmy Connors has drawn parallels to the legendary Djokovic-Murray duo. So, what exactly has Connors said?

Marat Safin, the former World No. 2 and 2-time Grand Slam champion, is stepping into Andrey Rublev’s camp at a crucial juncture. A dominant force in the early 2000s, Safin clinched the US Open in 2000 and the AO in 2005, gaining a reputation for his explosive serve, baseline brilliance, and clutch performances under pressure. His arrival to Rublev’s coaching team couldn’t have been more timely, as the Russian has suffered three consecutive early-round defeats at Indian Wells, the Dubai Open, and the Miami Open.

Safin will now team up alongside Rublev’s long-time coach Fernando Vicente, who’s been guiding the 27-year-old since 2017. The move has caught the eye of tennis legend Jimmy Connors, who compared this pairing to the coaching collaborations of Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, a partnership that defined eras. 

Speaking at the Advantage Connors podcast aired on April 1, Connors said, “I think it’s an opportunity for both? Rublev probably needs someone like him, with the same attitude and personality. The same character who can understand what he’s going through when he’s up and down and he’s going through a lot of the waves that you go through when you’re playing a match. I think that could be a very good thing for Rublev, because Safin has been away from the game for a while.”

He continued, “He probably watched this player from the sidelines and told him that if you did this and that, he would dissect it a little bit. He probably asked him what he thought, and he told him that I had some ideas. It’s like Djokovic and Murray, why not give it a try? Try it and you’ll see. But why compare the Safin-Rublev combo with the Novak-Murray pair?

The partnership between Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray has been making waves since the Brit joined the 24-time GS winner’s coaching team last November. Since then, Djokovic stormed into the AO semifinal with trademark dominance before an injury setback briefly halted his momentum. He bounced back with a strong run to the Miami Open final as well, narrowly falling to Czech rising star Jakub Mensik.

Despite early-round stumbles in Qatar and Indian Wells, the Serb maestro is gradually regaining his rhythm, aiming to turn around a rocky 2024 season that, so far, only boasts an Olympic gold medal. “I still have motivation to win Grand Slams, make more history. That’s one of the biggest reasons why I asked Andy to work with me. Because I still have big plans. So as long as that’s the case, I’ll keep going,” Novak said after appointing Murray as his coach.

Now, in a similar storyline of comeback and revival, Safin is stepping in to guide Rublev through the crucial clay-court swing. Their journey begins at the Monte-Carlo Masters on April 7, with Safin committed for the entire stretch. 

Recently, Rublev himself voiced his love for clay, hinting that redemption might just be written in red dirt.

“Real tennis is played on clay”—Andrey Rublev shares his love for the clay court 

Andrey Rublev was on absolute fire across ATP events two years ago, particularly those played on his favorite terrain: clay. In April 2023, he captured the prestigious Monte Carlo Masters title by defeating Holger Rune in a gripping final. His clay-court dominance didn’t stop there. 

At the SRPSKA Open, the Russian powered through to the championship match, only falling short to Dusan Lajovic. Fast forward to July, Rublev added another clay title to his resume, taking down the Danish Casper Ruud in the final of the Swedish Open. Even his last ATP title before his 2024 Qatar Open triumph was also on clay, the 9th seed defeated Felix Auger-Aliassime in the Madrid Open final last May.

No surprises here, Rublev has a clear affection for the red dirt. Why? According to him, “The real tennis is played on clay, because it is the surface that requires you to think continuously, to be prepared for long and intense battles, to have an increased physical and mental endurance, and also to be smarter. On hard or fast, everything is more improvised because you hardly have time to think.”

Now, his next major challenge awaits at the Monte Carlo Masters, set to kick off 8th of April. Given his past victory in this ATP 1000 tournament, Rublev will strive to recapture his winning momentum. 

With Marat Safin now in his corner and clay season heating up, do you think the Russian ace will bounce back in style? Share your thoughts in the comments below!