It is only the second time in history that two Russians have made it to the French Open final. The first, in 2004, saw Anastasia Myskina beat Elena Dementieva to clinch the crown.

And three out of these four women started their tennis careers at the Spartak Academy in Moscow, even sharing the same trainer – Safina’s mom.

The Academy is where Dinara Safina used to practice as a girl, and one of its courts was home to another Russian tennis star, Anna Kournikova. So the children in the Academy have a strong tradition to follow.

With five Russian women in the top ten in the world, there are plenty of role models for the girls here to look up to.

Elena Ivanova could be the next one to watch.

The 17-year-old splits her time between Moscow and Michigan in the United States, where she gained a scholarship to improve her tennis.

She says it is the training here in Moscow that she enjoys the most.

“We were doing fitness together, with Safina, so I kind of knew her, which is exciting. They just don’t act like they are stars. They are practicing like us. That’s what I like about this place: there are no stars here,” Elena Ivanova said.

So, no room for diva-like demands or behavior here – just a varied training session with high quality advice.

Including that of 80-year-old Larisa Preobrazhenskaya, who trained Anna Kournikova from the ages of seven to nine, before Anna moved to Florida.

She says the reason for Russian success can be traced to the way the children are taught.

”The Russian school of tennis means a flexible style of playing. Americans mainly play at the bottom line while we play drop-shots, volleys and cross-court shots. Let’s take Safina and Kuznetsova, for example. They can do everything in tennis and that’s the reason why they are in the final now,” said the coach.

Larisa says she is not prepared to hedge her bets on whether Safina, younger sister of male tennis player Marat Safin, or seventh-seeded Kuznetsova, will claim the title of the French Open.

Either way, the winner will be Russia.