The 39-year-old Lundgren succeeds Denis Golovanov as Safin's coach. Golovanov, who is Safin's close friend, had worked with the 2000 U.S. Open champion for nearly 18 months — a fairly long tenure by Safin's standards. Though Golovanov lacked experience coaching elite pros and his hiring was viewed by many observers as a case of Safin selecting his buddy rather than a budding tennis mind as his coach, the towering, temperamental Russian did win the 2002 BNP Paribas Masters title and advanced to the Australian Open final in January working with Golovanov.After a strong start to the season, Safin has stalled a bit, losing five of his next seven matches before scoring a 5-7, 6-2, 6-2, victory over Cyril Saulnier in Estoril yesterday. Lundgren was on hand in Safin's box for that match and his hiring is a sensible selection for a player who is one of the game's most physically-gifted talents, but has been prone to periods of concentration lapses and mental meltdowns in the past.
Lundgren has worked with temperamental talents in the past — he worked with surly Chilean Marcelo Rios before hooking up with Federer — and becomes the second Swede to coach Safin.
Seven-time Grand Slam champion Wilander, who served as Safin's coach during the 2001 season before stepping down because he could not commit to a full-time travel schedule, told Tennis Week.com he believes Safin has the talent to return to the top of tennis — if he can stay healthy — but stressed Safin must be smarter about his schedule and his approach to the sport.
"First of all he needs to get healthy and focus a little more when he plays," Wilander said in an interview with Tennis Week last fall. "Marat's got the right game and he can play and win on any surface. Whether he will do it, I'm not sure. I think with some of today's players, there's a difference in the drive to win and the drive to reach your potential. Some guys are only in it to win whereas they don't always see that growing as a player and developing their game and reaching their potential will actually help them win longer."
In Lundgren, Safin now has a coach who can construct tactically-sound game plans and has had success in helping Federer fulfill his prodigious potential. Both Safin, who has reached at least the quarterfinals of all four majors, and Federer, who holds the Wimbledon and Australian crowns and has won tournament titles on four different surfaces, are among the most accomplished all-surface players along with Andre Agassi.
Since Federer has won five of his six meetings with Safin their clashes can hardly be called a rivalry, but former No. 1 John McEnroe believes the pair can produce exceptional encounters in the future.
"If Safin's new-found dedication is for real, there are going to be some great match-ups in the years ahead, not least with his rival in the men's final of the Australian Open, Roger Federer, who has it in him to be the greatest player who ever lived," McEnroe told the Telegraph. "It's a perfect contrast: the outright power of an unbelievable physical specimen like Safin against arguably the greatest striker of a ball in history in Federer. You watch Federer hit some shots and you wonder, 'How did he even think of that shot?' We're talking about two incredibly talented guys here."
Federer, who has been playing without a coach since parting company with Lundgren, has the mental make-up to maximize his talent. Safin, who has gone through several coaches in his career including Rafael Mensua, Briton Tony Pickard, Wilander and fellow Russians Andrei Chesnokov, Alexander Volkov and Golovanov, is hoping Lundgren can help him get the most out of his game.