Former world No. 54 Natalia Vikhlyantseva commented on Dinara Safina starting to coach Diana Shnaider.
Vikhlyantseva is glad that Safina and her brother Marat Safin have returned to tennis as coaches. She believes it`s a positive development when famous athletes share their experience. Vikhlyantseva recalled how Dinara Safina shared advice when she worked at the Russian Tennis Federation. For Vikhlyantseva, who was a young tennis player at the time, this was very valuable. She hopes Safina will achieve similar success in coaching as she did in her playing career.
Vikhlyantseva noted that it`s currently the clay season and it`s important for Shnaider to defend her ranking points. Shnaider performed well last year under the guidance of Igor Andreev. Vikhlyantseva anticipates seeing the results of Safina`s coaching by Roland Garros. She is interested to observe in what specific areas Shnaider will improve her game, considering their different playing styles. According to Vikhlyantseva, former professional tennis players notice subtle but important details that might be overlooked by others due to their extensive experience.
Marcus Blakely 
Gilbert Pendleton