NEW YORK (AP) Vera Zvonareva reached her second straight Grand Slam final, defeating top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki 6-4, 6-3 at the U.S. Open on Friday.
The 20-year-old Wozniacki had made her first major final at Flushing Meadows in 2009 and had been dominant in her run this year. She lost just 17 games in advancing to the semifinals, the fewest since Serena Williams dropped 14 in 2002.
But Zvonareva knocked her off rhythm with powerful serves and assertive play. The seventh-seeded Russian had five aces, and she won 70 percent of points on her first serve and 13 of 17 points at the net.
It was very difficult for both of us with this wind today,'' Zvonareva said in an on-court interview.I think I was patient and aggressive like I was in previous matches.''
Zvonareva will play for the title against the winner of Friday's second semifinal between past U.S. Open champions Venus Williams and Kim Clijsters.
Zvonareva rarely seemed flustered by Wozniacki's knack for returning virtually every shot - and by the strings that broke on three of her rackets.
Had five newly strung rackets before the match,'' Zvonareva said.In one hour, three of them gone. Don't think anything like this has happened to me before.''
Wozniacki had an uncharacteristic 31 unforced errors, the wind again making for difficult play at Arthur Ashe Stadium. The Dane had been riding a 13-match winning streak and led the tour with 31 victories on hard courts this year.
Zvonareva, who turned 26 on Tuesday, had never been past the fourth round at the U.S. Open before this year. She lost to Serena Williams 6-3, 6-2 in her first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon in July.
After Wozniacki broke back to even the second set at 2-2, Zvonareva quickly won the first three points of the next game on Wozniacki's serve. She gave herself triple break point when she ran down a shot by Wozniacki that had bounced off the net tape, hitting the ball deep to set up a winning overhead.
After Zvonareva had to change rackets again, Wozniacki hit a forehand into the net to give the Russian a break she wouldn't relinquish.