Kuznetsova Claims 2nd 2006 Title at Bali

Kuznetsova, the top seed, hung tough with the No.6-seeded Bartoli to pull out the first set, eventually grabbing the crucial break of serve in the last game on a double fault. She picked up steam from there, dictating play with huge serves and forehands in front of a thrilled capacity crowd, ending it in straights for her third career Bali title.

"I would like to have won the match a little easier, but I managed to play well when I needed to," said Kuznetsova, who was seeded No.1 at a Sony Ericsson WTA Tour event for the first time in her career. "I served well after getting into some difficult spots, but after the tough first set it looked like she was getting tired."

"I started the match very well, I kept up with her for much of the time, but I began to feel a little tired in the second set after such a big match last night," said Bartoli, who upset the tournament's No.2 seed, Patty Schnyder, on Saturday. "I tried to attack her backhand, as her forehand is the stronger shot, and it worked earlier in the match. But she was just too tough in the end; that's what makes her such a good player."

Kuznetsova is now 13-0 lifetime at the Wismilak International, having already captured titles at the Tier III event in 2002 and in 2004. This year she faced little resistance en route to the semifinals, where she ousted No.3 seed Lindsay Davenport, 76(4) 76(5), for just her second win in their five meetings. She is now 2-0 lifetime versus Bartoli.

"I don't know why I play so well here," said Kuznetsova, who is now 7-7 in Tour singles finals, having never taken multiple titles at any other tournament. "I don't think it's just good luck, as I work very hard to be where I am, and to be ranked in the Top 5 you have to have a very professional approach to the job. However, Bali is such a wonderful place to play tennis, and that definitely makes me feel relaxed and comfortable."

Bartoli was playing in just her second career Tour singles final. In January, she took home her maiden title, at the Tier IV event in Auckland, New Zealand. Her victory over Schnyder in the semis represented the second complete Top 10 win of her career, having defeated Nadia Petrova just a few weeks ago in New Haven. She had taken out two other Top 10 players previously, but both of those matches finished in retirement victories.

Another player who has enjoyed enormous success in Bali came alive in the doubles draw this week. Davenport, playing doubles for the first time in over a year, and with good friend and fellow American Corina Morariu no less, stormed through two seeded tandems to reach the final, dispatching No.2 seeds Natalie Grandin and Trudi Musgrave for the title. It was Davenport and Morariu's fifth title together (the highlight among their previous four being a 1999 Wimbledon triumph), and their 36th and 12th individually.

"I had another great time here in Bali and I'm glad to come away with another trophy," said Davenport, who won the singles in 2005 and was 7-0 here before the aforementioned loss to Kuznetsova. "Corina is my best friend, and in the plane coming to Bali I told her I really wanted to play doubles here. We've played with each other a lot over the years, but not so much lately, so it was great to pair up again and win the title."
-- WTA