Second seed Svetlana Kuznetsova collected her second title in two weeks after thrashing world No. 1 Amelie Mauresmo of France 6-4, 6-0 at the China Open yesterday in Beijing.

Travelling from Indonesia where she won her third Bali title, the Russian world No. 5 did not let fatigue get to her, dominating the rain-interrupted title match by winning 10 games in a row.

It was her second final appearance at the China Open, after losing to Serena Williams in the inaugural event two years ago. Her victory allows Kuznetsova to leapfrog Kim Clijsters and return to her career high No. 4 in the world rankings.

"I was very close last time and I am so glad that I made it," said Kuznetsova.

A highly competitive final match was expected between the pair as both have enjoyed excellent seasons so far. Mauresmo collected titles at the Australian Open and Wimbledon and reached the semi-finals of the US Open while Kuznetsova was the losing finalist at the French Open.

Mauresmo, holding a 4-2 record in their meetings before the match, gained an upper hand with an early break in the third game before going 4-2 up. Kuznetsova broke back in the eighth to level the score before the rain started.

"I am happy I was able to break back before the rain," the Russian said.

When the two came back to court after almost two hours, Mauresmo seemed to lose all rhythm against a robust Kuznetsova, who delivered lethal smashes from every corner.

Mauresmo was then broken four times in a row before she putting a backhand return out on match-point.

"It was not her day. She is not at her best and I really played well," Kuznetsova said.

"It does not always happen like that. She did not play her best but I just contributed to it."

The crowd was behind Mauresmo, just as they cheered on Serena Williams in the 2004 final. However, the Russian 2004 US Open winner said she has gotten used to a slight lack of support.

"Something happened to me," she said. "It's a little bit hard (to play like this) but I have found the way to motivate myself."

Kuznetsova said she was eager to defeat Mauresmo, once her doubles partner, but did not want to get carried away.

"She is a very good friend of mine," she said. "I don't want to have a big smile on my face but I think I have found the right way to play against her."

Asked about the world number one spot, Kuznetsova seemed sure that should she keep playing well, she would achieve this goal but that she was not obsessed with it.

Mauresmo was playing her sixth final of the season, and had won the last five. A marathon semi-final victory over Serb Jelena Jankovic on Saturday apparently tired her out going into the final.

"I was a little bit tired after yesterday's match," she said. "She probably felt better than me after the long delay by rain but it's not an excuse."

She shrugged off the defeat despite being the world's top player. "You cannot win all the time," she said. "Sometimes you lose, just like Roger Federer."

Svetlana Kuznetsova

Amelie Mauresmo

In the women's doubles final held earlier yesterday, Virginia Ruano Pascual and Paola Suarez defeated Russia's Anna Chakvetadze and Elena Vesnina to win the title.

The tournament was a disappointment for China's doubles pairs, including Grand Slam winners Zheng Jie and Yan Zi, who all bowed out before the semi-finals.

However, Peng Shuai stole the home plaudits with a run to the semi finals, where she lost to Kuznetsova.

(China Daily September 25, 2006)