Svetlana Kuznetsova defeated Dinara Safina 6-4, 6-3 to capture the Porsche Grand Prix at Stuttgart, Germany, her first Sony Ericsson WTA Tour singles title since taking New Haven in the summer of 2007, over 20 months ago.

"It has been a while," Svetlana said. "At the beginning today I was a little bit nervous. It's tough for me to play finals - I haven't won too many of them lately. But I started playing better and better as the match went on and I was able to win. I want to thank everybody for their support. It's a great thing to be here."


Safina actually had more break points than her compatriot, five to four, but the world's No. 1 player couldn't covert on any of her chances.

"I just wasn't feeling that good on court today," Safina said. "Svetlana put me under pressure right from the start and played really well. She deserved to win. All in all it has been a good week. Compared to my other appearances here, it was a big improvement. At least I was in the final. It's a shame I couldn't win but I'll be back next year and hopefully I'll make the next step."

The doubles title went to Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Petrova, who defeated Gisela Dulko and Flavia Pennetta to capture their second straight Premier title.



(photo/SASCHA SCHUERMANN/AFP/Getty Images, AP Photo)

Svetlana Kuznetsova wins Porsche Tennis Grand Prix