SAFINA WILL FACE KUZNETSOVA IN FINALS

Top seeded Safina defeated Venus Williams 6-7(3), 6-3, 6-4 on friday to move on to finals to meet Svetlana Kuznetsova in the Italian open. The finals is going to be all Russian Match as both the contenders are Russian. "It was a hard match" said safina. Venus williams fighted well but safina's form continues and she overtook venus quite easily.

Safina and Venus were strong at the baseline and venus often come closer to the nets to finish the point. But it didnt work all the time. From the second set Safina completely taken the game away from Venus as she complete quite easily. In the third set, Safina served out the 3-hour, 9-minute match after committing three double-faults and saving four break points. Safina had 32 winners, compared to 38 for Williams.

Williams, by reaching the semifinals in Rome, is still assured of moving to third in the rankings -- her highest spot in six years.

The final on Saturday will be a repeat of last week's Porsche GP final in Germany, where Kuznetsova defeated Safina in straight sets to capture her first title in almost two years. Both players have been runners-up in Rome, Kuznetsova in 2007 and Safina in 2006.