Cyprus tennis sensation Marcos Baghdatis said Sunday that he returns to Paris on Monday to prepare for the Davis Cup tournament in Bulgaria.
The unexpected finalist of the Australian Open was given a hero’s welcome Saturday, greeted at Larnaca airport by thousands of supporters who pushed for a glimpse of the young player.
The celebrations continued on Saturday night when his home town of Limassol declared him its “axion teknon” or honourary citizen and was given the gold medal by the town’s mayor, as well as a street named after him.
Baghdatis and his entourage of trainer, manager and family were received by President Tassos Papadopoulos on Sunday morning where the 20 year old’s future and his mandatory military service were discussed.
“I do not want to skip my military duty and I want to serve my homeland just like my brothers did. I just need some time now to be able to pursue my tennis career,” Baghdatis told a press conference after addressing a crowd of 4,000 tennis fans in Nicosia.
“I cannot think about Roland Garros or Wimbledon right now. They are too far for me. I prefer to stay on the hard court and will start training for the Davis Cup draw in Bulgaria,” he said.
Baghdatis, who knocked out three top seeded players in a roller-coaster ride that drew worldwide media attention, was beaten in the US$ 14.5 mln final in Melbourne by world leader Roger Federer, who added a seventh Grand Slam trophy to his mantelpiece.
But his performance won him unprecedented support in a country where tennis has only recently blossomed in the shadow of football that still attracts some 90% of the island’s state funding for sports.
Hysterical crowd in Cyprus were glued to their television sets a week earlier and then poured into the streets to celebrate the only Cypriot ever to reach a Grand Slam final.
“My work is not over yet and I will do my best to win all the tournaments I will play in. I will fight for every one,” an emotional Marcos told reporters and friends when he arrived at Larnaca airport on Saturday.
Holding up the silver trophy he received from Australia’s tennis legend Rod Laver, whose name was given to the Melbourne stadium where the Open finals were held, Baghdatis said “it was a dream to play at a Grand Slam final” and thanked his parents and the “sensational” crowds that supported him during the 15-day tournament.
“My plans for the future are to continue to play tennis,” he said advising children to “work hard and believe in themselves” in order to achieve their own successes.
On Sunday he had a new message for young people: “Stay away from drugs and get active in sports.”
Education Minister Pefkios Georghiades said Baghdatis had all the virtues of ethos and determination youngsters aspire to and hoped the young ace would soon become the new king of tennis.
The Minister called Marcos “the best ambassador of this small island in the whole world”, while the Bishop of Larnaca gave him an icon of the Virgin Mary.
His manager Patrick Mouratoglou said Marcos “is very special, not like every person.”
Marcos Baghdatis, accompanied by his coach Guillaume Peyre, his model girlfriend Camille Neviere and members of the Mouratoglou tennis academy then headed back to Limassol where he was the star spectator of the crucial football match between his home town Apollon and the Nicosia giant Apoel.
The 54th-ranked outsider, dubbed “Baghdatis of Cyprus”, is now ranked 27th, and will leave the island early on Monday to prepare for international tournaments in Marseille and Rotterdam.
