Kuznetsova claims French Open crown
PARIS (Reuters) - Russia's Svetlana Kuznetsova froze out world number one Dinara Safina to claim a first French Open title on Saturday after overwhelming her compatriot.
Kuznetsova hardly allowed Safina to warm up on court before she condemned her to a 6-4 6-2 defeat in 74 minutes on an unusually chilly and damp day in Paris.
So one-sided was the affair that it barely came as a surprise when the dejected Safina bowed out with a double fault that bounced off the tape and fell wide.
Instead of rejoicing in her moment of triumph, a sympathetic Kuznetsova consoled her teary-eyed childhood friend by giving her a hug and a kiss across the net.
It was only then that the seventh seed raised her arms and thumped her heart to celebrate the fact that after five years she had won a second grand slam title to add to her 2004 success at the U.S. Open.
"I was waiting for many moments for this," Kuznetsova told the crowd after being handed the trophy by six times former winner Steffi Graf.
TEARFUL SAFINA
Seconds later, she turned her thoughts to Safina, who had also lost to Ana Ivanovic in the Paris final 12 months ago.
"You will get it one day and I'm so sorry for today, you are a great athlete," Kuznetsova told Safina.
The despondent top seed, with tears rolling down her face, said: "Hopefully, one day I can win here."
Safina, who has now finished runner-up in the season's opening two majors, will remain world number one but that will come as scant consolation after she came so agonizingly close to ending her wait for her first grand slam crown.
"I was a little bit desperate on the court... didn't stay tough mentally. I lost myself," she said.
The showdown had been expected to be a close affair because Safina had swept to a 20-1 record on clay before the final. That one loss was to Kuznetsova.
Safina also appeared to hold the upper hand because she had won five of their last six meetings and was the dominant force over the last fortnight, dropping only one set in her six matches.
Kuznetsova, in comparison, had to battle through three successive three-setters to reach the showpiece match.
PROMISING START
The 23-year-olds had been hitting partners since the age of 12 and Safina recalled Kuznetsova as "a funny girl. I remember her coming to the match with a two-liter (bottle of) Pepsi.
"You would look at her, and it was like, no way can she be one day winning a grand slam."
Less than 24 hours after that recollection, Kuznetsova had a second major while Safina was left wondering how things could have gone so wrong.
The day started promisingly for Safina when she broke in the opening game but from then on she had to play catch-up as Kuznetsova immediately snatched the break back, helped along the way with a double fault and a forehand error.
Subtle drop shots, elegant slices and cute angles from Kuznetsova had Safina running ragged around the court. While Safina had trouble second-guessing Kuznetsova's tactics, the top seed appeared to have only one game plan at her disposal.
She tried to outhit Kuznetsova with her ferocious baseline power, only to see the ball bounce back into her half of the court with added topspin.
It left Safina grunting with effort as she hit every shot while Kuznetsova went about her task like a silent assassin.
In the 10th game of the first set, Safina lunged from side to side as she tried to stay in a 13-stroke rally but ended up dumping the ball into the net to surrender the first set.
Fans on Center Court, wearing winter coats and scarves in temperatures of 12 degrees Celsius, huddled together in the stands hoping the action would soon warm them up -- it never happened.
With the match running away from her by the second set, Safina even tried to surprise Kuznetsova by slowing down her first serve.
The ploy failed to catch Kuznetsova off guard and she pounced to break for 4-2 after another Safina forehand went wide.
Eight minutes later, it was all over.
(Editing by Clare Fallon and Ken Ferris)
