Safina makes the hard work pay off

Dinara Safina was on fire since the start of the season, and she added the Toray Pan Pacific Open to her collection of 2008 wins, after she ousted her compatriot in straight sets.

Safina received the winner plate after she won to Svetlana Kuznetsova, 61 63.

"Playing Svetlana today, I knew I had to take my chances and be aggressive from the beginning; and it worked," Safina said. "My game just clicked after my match with Kanepi. My coach told me to stick to my game and it has worked. It has all been coming together. It's always nice to get a trophy, but the one here at the Toray Pan Pacific Open is very pretty and unique."

"I'm of course disappointed I lost in the final, but I have to stay positive because I had a good week in Tokyo," Kuznetsova said. "I came from Fed Cup, which was on clay, and arrived here later than usual, and still played solid tennis all week. Reaching the final was very important for my confidence. And Dinara played really well; she was the favorite going into this final and she delivered. She has been one of the best players since mid-season - she's fresher, more confident and an overall better player than in previous years."