The match was also the conclusion of a series of matches between them during the preceding clay court season, with Kuznetsova beating Safina to win the title in Stuttgart, and Safina avenging the loss by beating Kuznetsova in Rome.
In 2003, Safina performed the English and Korean vocals for a Korean song called Hamangyeon (하망연(何茫然)), which was featured as part of the soundtrack for Dae Jang Geum, a popular South Korean historical drama TV series.
Ali Safina was born in Multan, Pakistan then he moved to Oman with his parents where he completed his schooling; for higher education he went to Scotland and got a degree in mechanical engineering.
Safina is a MacArthur Fellow, a Guggenheim Fellow, a Pew Fellow in Marine conservation, an Utne Reader visionary, and a recipient of Chicago’s Brookfield Zoo’s Rabb Medal, among other honors.
Shem Ochuodho is a Kenyan running for Deputy President in the March 2013 Kenyan Presidential election on a Safina party ticket.
After the 2008 French Open, Krajan was joined by Dejan Vojnović, retired Croatian Olympic sprinter, who became Safina's fitness coach.