Kuznetsova to make amends

While the talents of the 20-year-old from St. Petersburg are undisputed, she is still seen as a player susceptible to an attack of nerves at the vital moment. Despite her tender age, this is her fifth year on the WTA Tour and though life since her US Open success in 2004 has been difficult, she is confident her experiences have strengthened her.

"The last two years were very tough. I lost to Anastasia and she won the title and I was up. Against Justine it was the same. I had everything in my hand and I think this year it's just different.

It seemed as though the old demons would come back to haunt her in her fourth round match with Francesca Schiavone, when she lost her serve seven times, and surrendered a double-break advantage in the final set before eventually sealing victory.

"It was very similar in the match versus Francesca also. I guess I was more mature in this match. I have passed through this. I have won in Miami, I have been through a gap last year. I have been thinking about it a lot and got more consistent in the end. I am more confident about myself these days."

In the quarter-finals, Kuznetsova started abysmally, trailing 5-1 in the first set, before bursting into life and taking 13 of the next 14 games to win 7-6 6-0. The second set was sealed with the loss of just three points.

"I guess it was nerves, I just couldn't move" said the Russian of her poor start. "Maybe it looked like I was not awake. I just felt I wanted it so badly and I just had to breathe between the points and somehow let it go and start playing again. It was very tough."

The number eight seed will have to contend as much with herself as with her opponent, 17-yera-old Czech player Vaidisova in their semi-final if she is to advance to her first French Open final on Saturday.

Postcards from Roland