NEW YORK, Sept 12: Svetlana Kuznetsova powered to her first Grand Slam title by beating fellow Russian Elena Dementieva 6-3, 7-5 in the final of the US Open at Flushing Meadows on Saturday.
The 19-year-old ninth seed belted 35 winners to become the third Russian woman to capture a Grand Slam in 2004, the first time since 1979 three women from the same country have won the top prizes in tennis.
Sixth seed Dementieva, who lost to another Russian Anastasia Myskina in the French Open final in June, went into the match as the favourite and began strongly, winning the first four points to break Kuznetsova to love. But Kuznetsova soon found her range, taking advantage of Dementieva's weak serve to break back in the following game and then again in the sixth game on the way to taking the opening set.
Dementieva, wearing a heavy strapping on her left thigh, began to open up with the powerful forehand that caused so much damage against Jennifer Capriati in Friday's semifinal, breaking Kuznetsova to move 2-0 ahead in the second set.
But she could not consolidate and a missed forehand allowed Kuznetsova to break straight back. Dementieva seemed to take a grip of the set again when she broke to lead 4-2 but her younger opponent kept pounding huge forehands on to the baseline. The 22-year-old's serving demons returned when two double-faults gave Kuznetsova the chance to come back to 4-3, and with it Dementieva's hopes began to fade. -Reuters
