Photo: Arne Forsell/rca productions
Following his success at the If Stockholm Open last week, Marcos is up to No. 41 in the South African Airways 2009 ATP Rankings – a leap of 25 places.
It is a remarkable effort by Marcos, who just two weeks ago was ranked No. 87. Back-to-back titles at the Tashkent Challenger, Marcos’ third ATP Challenger Tour title of the season, and his third ATP World Tour title in Stockholm have seen him jump 46 places back into the Top 50.
The past three months have been a turnaround for Marcos, who fell to a low of No. 151 in the rankings on 6th July, following a knee injury that kept him sidelined through Wimbledon. Prior to his resounding success in the past two weeks, he had won two ATP Challenger Tour titles at Vancouver and St. Remy, and reminded the world’s best of his talent by pushing World No. 2 Rafael Nadal to three close sets in Beijing.
Speaking in Stockholm over the weekend, Marcos said: “When you are out for eight months because of injury, it's not easy to win matches. For sure I had my doubts about being able to come back (after an injury-stricken 2008). I'm really hungry to do well again now. I am going to do everything I can to achieve my dreams - to win Grand Slams and get back into the Top 5 or Top 10.
If Stockholm Open Photo Gallery
"I've had to accept being ranked down at 150 and I've gone to play some challengers, to try and win some matches and get the confidence back up again. Tashkent last week was very hard. But it's good to go back to where it all began and remember how tough the challenger tournaments are.”
Marcos is now spending a week at home to rest, before travelling to South Korea to play a final ATP Challenger Tour event.
Stay tuned to www.baghdatis.com for all the latest.
Well done, Marcos!
