STUTTGART, Germany - Svetlana Kuznetsova ended a disturbing trend while Dinara Safina fought off a serious upset bid and at the end of the day both Russians moved into the final in Stuttgart.
Kuznetsova had lost her last eight matches against fellow Top 10 players going into her semifinal with Elena Dementieva but it didn't matter at all as she cruised to a 64 62 victory over the No.2 seed. Kuznetsova, the No.5 seed, had been to the semifinals at the event three times before - 2004, 2006 and 2007 - but had never made the final.
"Things went my way today," said Kuznetsova, who improves to 6-4 lifetime against her countrywoman. "I enjoyed myself. I played well and enjoyed the match. The atmosphere was great and I was very happy on the court. I think I served well - I put pressure on her and used my hands a lot in the match."
"I think I was too passive today," Dementieva said. "I didn't attack her and I didn't put a lot of pressure on her, so she was feeling comfortable playing inside the court and making winners from her forehand, even her backhand down the line. She's a very good player. She likes playing on clay. The way I was playing today, though, there wasn't a chance I would win."
Kuznetsova will try to stop another sour trend on Sunday: she has lost 10 of her last 11 Sony Ericsson WTA Tour singles finals. Through the end of 2006 she was 8-7 in finals but she is now 9-17; that one title, at New Haven in 2007, was also obtained when her opponent in the final, Agnes Szavay, won the first set but retired midway through the second set due to a back injury.
World No.1 and top-seeded Safina looked as though she would become Flavia Pennetta's third Top 10 scalp in a row, after the Italian had upset Nadia Petrova and Jelena Jankovic in the two rounds prior. She fell behind 63 31 and was a game away from losing at 63 54; but the Russian didn't lose another game from there, reeling off 10 in a row to survive in a comeback victory, 36 75 60.
"I wasn't doing anything. I guess I was passive. But I was able to change things fast," Safina said. "She was 63 54 up and got tight. She gave me a few free points but I also began playing better, so maybe she was feeling more pressure. I told myself to get fighting and do something to win the match."
Safina, playing her first tournament as the top-ranked player in the world after ascending to the No.1 spot on April 20, will be in her third final of the year, having finished runner-up in her first two tournaments at Sydney (to Dementieva) and the Australian Open (to Serena Williams). She is 9-9 in Tour singles finals.
The Russians have squared off 11 times before, and while Kuznetsova was ahead early on in the series, 4-3, Safina took complete control in 2008, winning all four of their meetings - three in straight sets - to go up in the head-to-head, 7-4.
