If your family is the first to own a house with a tennis court in a country’s second largest city, it is fair to say the sport is more a novelty than a national obsession.
That is slowly changing in Cyprus, thanks to one of the game’s most charismatic playmakers, Marcos Baghdatis.
The former world No.8 is a star on the Mediterranean island and enjoys a massive following in Australia – thanks to a sizeable Greek-Cypriot community and his blistering run to the Australian Open final five years ago.
It has been a rocky road since that breakthrough and making the 2006 Wimbledon semifinals, with his ranking plummeting to a lowly 151 only 18 months ago.
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There has never been any doubting Baghdatis’s brilliant shot-making ability and his on-court exuberance, but fitness and consistency have always been a thorn in his side, hindering any chance of cementing his position among the game’s top echelon of players.
Unable to contest his final two scheduled tournaments of last season due to a shoulder injury, Baghdatis took 10 days off before committing to a gruelling off-season back home, which included mountain-biking at altitude in the Troodos Mountains.
Baghdatis took to the practice courts at Tennyson yesterday ahead of his third Brisbane International campaign and, in an ominous warning for his Australian Open rivals, made it clear he had put in the hard yards.
“I worked really hard on every part of my fitness – my endurance, my strength, my speed, my power, and that was the first month,” he said.
“The last two weeks I worked a lot on court – my serve I think I have improved. I’m feeling fit and well and the shoulder injury has gone, so everything’s perfect.”
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At Indian Wells in March last year, Baghdatis achieved what few players could claim – fighting off match points to upstage Roger Federer.
At the time it was the first instance Federer had let match points slip since 2006 against Rafael Nadal in Rome.
“It was the best win of my career,” he said.
“Last year was a very good year for me. I played a lot of good matches against top 10 players and managed to win a few of those so now I’m back in the 20 and looking to going even further”.
The injury that sidelined him at the end of last season may have been a blessing in disguise as it allowed him more time back in Cyprus to refresh before embarking on a strict fitness and diet regime.
“It’s the first time in 11 years I spent my off-season in Cyprus so I had lots of fun and I think it’s the most I’ve worked in an off-season,” Baghdatis said.
“Mentally, you know, I think I’m happier because I got to spend time with my folks and my friends and I’m fitter too so feeling great.”
Baghdatis said he was thrilled to be back in a country that makes him feel so at home.
“For sure, it’s like having a home crowd here,” he said.
“Every time I come to Australia the crowd is really nice to me, so friendly so I’m very happy to be back.”
Having grown up in Limassol in Cyprus, Baghdatis still makes trips home to watch his favourite soccer team, Apollon Limassol FC, play in a domestic league.
Tennis still plays second fiddle in Cyprus where soccer reigns supreme.
None of Baghdatis’s Davis Cup teammates even hold an ATP ranking in the top 1000 and while more Cypriot youths are taking up tennis, it could be some time before he has a player to follow in his footsteps.
“Soccer is more popular, it’s definitely still the main sport,” he said.
“We have one or two juniors coming through, but it’s tough.
“There’s no Davis Cup support at all.”
If Baghdatis can at last combine his talent with a renewed approach to fitness and remain injury-free a Grand Slam title must surely be within reach.
“I don’t have a goal ranking-wise but if I’m fit, if I work every day and try to win as many matches as I can I will be ready,” he said with a grin.
“And when the chance is given to me to maybe go further in a Grand Slam, why not win one?”
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