MANILA, Philippines – If there's someone Manny Pacquiao would take a page off from for his retirement plans, it should be former World No. 1 Marat Safin.
Shortly after pulling out a gritty win over fellow old-timer Carlos Moya in the International Premier Tennis League's "Legends" action, Safin gave our very own hero-turned-politician Manny Pacquiao some pointers for a retired athlete's life.
"Good luck to Manny," Don't hit anybody," the Russian netter quipped.
But after a couple of laughs, the renowned Pete Sampras tormentor turned serious.
"In my opinion, he's doing the right thing ... He can deliver things the right way. [To] the Youth, the new generation; Sports, Tourism. Many other things. It's a lot of money ... It's economics."
For his part, Safin knows a bit or two about logging legislative work.
The 35-year-old right-hand maestro was elected to a Russian Federal Parliament in 2011. His party is under President Vladimir Putin's, United Russia.
Prior swapping tennis for politics, Safin carved out a career off winning two Grand Slam titles. He won the 2000 US Open and then the 2005 Australian Open.
He retired from the game in 2009, ending a 10-year pro career that included Lleyton Hewitt and Sampras in his list of top-tier preys.
"I think he could be effective than me," Safin added. "The way people respect him around the world. You need people like him to work on the new generation."
Pacquiao announced he was gunning for a Senate seat last October, and has drawn mixed reactions from his supporters.
Safin peaked at the Men's No. 1 ladder in November 2000, while Pacquiao was the first and only professional boxer become an eight-division champion.
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