Ninth seed Svetlana Kuznetsova rallied twice from a break down in the second set to defeat sixth-seeded Russian compatriot Elena Dementieva in the final of the US Open.
Kuznetsova won the match 6-3 7-5 for her first career grand slam title and fourth overall. The 19-year-old became the lowest-seeded woman to win the competition.
No Russian woman ever had progressed to the final of a grand slam singles draw until the French Open, when Dementieva was routed by countrywoman Anastasia Myskina 6-1 6-2. Another Russian, Maria Sharapova, won Wimbledon, meaning the last three Grand Slams of the year have been won by a Russian woman.
In this one, Kuznetsova was broken at love in the first game of the match but immediately broke back and did so again in the sixth game en route to winning the first set 6-3. She had 12 forehand winners in the set and Dementieva, playing once again with a heavily taped left thigh, just one.
The 22-year-old Dementieva held leads of 2-0 and 4-2 in the second set but Kuznetsova rallied each time, breaking at 15 in the 11th game to take the lead for good. Kuznetsova closed out the match at 15 on a second-serve winner.
Kuznetsova and Dementieva had split their previous two career meetings, both this year. Kuznetsova won in three sets on clay in Berlin and Dementieva in three sets on a hard court in Los Angeles.
Filed by Johnny Proby
