Kuznetsova reaches Pilot Pen final
Kuznetsova reaches Pilot Pen final
Friday, 24, Aug 2007 09:21
Top-seeded Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova got past her compatriot Elena Dementieva on Friday to reach the final of the New Haven Pilot Pen Tennis tournament, the final U.S. Open warm up event.
Kuznetsova was leading the sixth-seeded Dementieva 4-6 6-3, 3-0 in their semi-final on the hard courts at the Connecticut Tennis Center at Yale when Dementieva retired due to nausea.
The two-time Grand Slam runner-up Dementieva also succumbed to Kuznetsova in the 2004 U.S. Open final.
The 22-year-old Kuznetsova's quarter-final opponent retired here on Thursday, as Kuznetsova was leading Francesca Schiavone when the Italian called it a week.
Kuznetsova will appear in her 20th career WTA final and is seeking her ninth overall title. She has been disappointing so far this year, appearing in four finals, but losing all of them.
She will play the winner of the other semi-final featuring Eleni Daniilidou or Agnes Szavay in the final on Saturday.
The U.S Open starts at Flushing Meadows on Monday.