With six players from the former Soviet Union making the last 16 of this week's German Open in Berlin, it is fair to say tennis is alive and kicking in the former Eastern Block states.

Glamour queen Anna Kournikova may have retired and world number three Maria Sharapova withdrew from Berlin with injury, but the Russians are well represented with world number four Svetlana Kuznetsova leading the charge.

Russia will contest this year's Federation Cup final against Spain and four of the world's top ten players come from Russia.

But Rausa Islanova, the mother of former men's world number one Marat Safin and his sister Dinara, who is competing in Berlin, remembers much leaner times.

She played in the 1960s when Soviet-Russian tennis was practically non-existent on the women's circuit under Communism.

"We had some talented players with Morosova, Bakshejeva and Dmitrova. But they weren't further supported just because tennis was not part of the Olympic programme," explained the 60-year-old from Moscow at the German Open.

Islanova reached the Grand Slam semifinals at the Junior French Open and Junior Wimbledon.

"But then there were great problems, either to get a visa or the financial means to start abroad," she remembers.

Even respective petitions addressed to the Communist Party were of no avail, says Islanova.

With only a few exceptions, the iron curtain in the Cold War era never lifted for young tennis talents.

"I believe I had what it takes to play among the world's best tennis players," she added.

"I grew up in a family with eight children, there was simply no money to finance a career in tennis."

After the breakdown of the Soviet Union, however, Islanova's children achieved what their mother could only dream of.

Marat Safin won both the US Open in 2000 and the Australian Open in 2005 and was temporarily the world number one in 2000.

Islanova's daughter Dinara reached the quarterfinals of both Roland Garros and the US Open in 2006.

For a long time, their mother worked at the Spartak Moskow centre for young tennis talents.

She even took Russia's first Grand Slam winner Anastasia Myskina, who won Roland Garros in 2004, and Elena Dementieva, the current world number nine, under her wing.

Many of Russia's players have left their homeland to train in the warmer climate of the southern United States or southern Europe.

For example, Sharapova lives in Florida while Monte Carlo is the residence of Kuznetsova.

According to Islanova this because the "Moscow metro region doesn't offer a good infrastructure, those tennis camps in the States offer practice sessions two or three times a day."

However, athletes rarely receive support by the Russian state or sponsors before making it into a national squad.

"A national high performance centre for tennis with boarding school, courts, fitness area and medical attendance all under one single roof — that would be highly desirable," said Islanova.

According to Islanova the main reason for the impressive rise of tennis from the former Soviet Union countries is simple.

"It's because of the professional skill of instructors and coaches, their love for tennis and the willingness of their protegees to work hard."

Or as they say in Russia — Rabota — or just pure hard work to you or me.

AFP