Kuznetsova reaches Porsche GP final

Svetlana Kuznetsova defeated Olympic champion and second-seeded Elena Dementieva 6-4, 6-2 on Saturday to reach the final of the Porsche Grand Prix.

The fifth-seeded Kuznetsova made the Stuttgart final for the first time after getting knocked out in her three previous semifinals.

"I surprised myself a little bit. I was extremely focused," Kuznetsova said.

She will play either top-ranked Dinara Safina or Flavia Pennetta in Sunday's final.

Kuznetsova now has a 6-4 career edge over Dementieva, who leads the tour with 29 match wins this year and has won two titles, in Auckland and Sydney, and was a semifinalist at the Australian Open.

In an all-Russian semifinal, Kuznetsova took early control and led 3-1. She set the pace from the baseline, moving Dementieva around the court.

"I wanted to come and be aggressive, I controlled the court," Kuznetsova said.

Dementieva climbed back to 3-3 but Kuznetsova broke serve again to win the first set.

She also took a decisive 3-0 lead in the second and never looked back to reach her first final of the year.

The last two points were typical of Dementieva's play - she netted what should have been a simple drop volley, then hit a backhand way too long to lose the match.

"I was too passive, I didn't attack her," Dementieva said. "I did not play at my high level."

The Stuttgart tournament used to be played on a hard surface, but has become the first indoor event on clay on the circuit.