The US Open may have resulted in disappointment for Marcos, but it came at the end of a tremendous summer for the Cypriot, who has had time to reflect on his 2010 success as he prepares for his assault on the Asian swing.
“I think it's been a great year in different ways,” explained Marcos on a conference call with the world’s media. “It's been a great year for me because it's been two years I'm not playing in this level. Lately I played a lot of matches with the Top 15 guys, played a lot of them. I beat three, four guys in the Top 10.” Two of those wins coming against then-World No. 1 Roger Federer in Indian Wells and 2010 ATP World Tour Champion Rafael Nadal in Cincinnati.
“It's a very good run, a very good year for me, knowing that for two years I didn't play this level. I was No. 150 in the world last year. So that's the reason it's been a good year. I'm finding back my rhythm.”
Indeed, the only slight on Marcos’ stats for the year have come in the Grand Slams, with third-round showings at the Australian Open and Roland Garros his best efforts. The 25 year old is eager to rectify this in 2011, though. “I know I didn't play so good in the Grand Slams this year. But I'm pretty positive. I wasn't preparing for the Grand Slams for the moment because I just wanted to play matches, play tournaments. That's what I did. Maybe next year I'll give it a shot on the Grand Slams.”
Marcos reunited with former coach, Guillaume Peyre, after Wimbledon and their renewed partnership has yielded an abundance of success for Marcos, including a runner-up finish in Washington and a semi-final showing at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament in Cincinnati.
Explaining the adjustments Peyre has brought to his game, Marcos said: “Just being more aggressive, maybe more consistent on the serve. Just being more aggressive on the return. Just like small things that make a difference.”
After a couple of weeks at home working hard on the practice courts, Marcos will now turn his attention to the ATP World Tour’s Asian swing, beginning with his participation in the Malaysian Open, Kuala Lumpur 2010, which begins on 27 September.
““For sure, I know it will be a tough tournament,” assessed Marcos, as he prepares to join a strong field featuring Robin Soderling, Nikolay Davydenko, Tomas Berdych and Mikhail Youzhny. “I'm willing to go there and try to win every match I play and try to basically make a good run. That's my goal. Just fight for every match and try to find the solution of winning. I'm pretty confident that I'm able to do that.”
From Kuala Lumpur, Marcos will head to Beijing, where he won the title in 2006, before the Asian swing culminates in the star-studded ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event in Shanghai. Marcos won’t be defending his title in Stockholm this year, choosing instead to make the smaller trip to Moscow for the Kremlin Cup, before then travelling to Vienna for the ATP World Tour 250 tournament in the Austrian capital.
Looking further ahead to 2011, Marcos has confirmed he will begin the season in Brisbane as he looks for some much-needed match practice after the off-season ahead of the Australian Open.
“I like Australia, I like playing there, so for sure [the Brisbane International] would be a great preparation [for the Open],” said Marcos. “I will look forward to playing there. It's good to play some matches before a Grand Slam. I think it's an advantage. It's playing matches. It's playing matches on the same surface.
“When you start the season, you don't have a lot of matches on your belt, so you need matches. I think before the Australian Open you need more matches than another Grand Slam because you didn't have those matches before. You're coming out from lots of practice, lots of gym work. You need some matches."
Stay tuned to www.baghdatis.com for all the latest news and photos as Marcos heads to Malaysia.
Go, Marcos!
