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The confidence-boosting 7-5 7-6(5) victory sent
Keys into the U.S. Open later this month as the world's number
10 ranked player.
"If you told me a week ago this is where I would be, I would
have laughed in your face!" Keys said in accepting the
tournament trophy.
In both sets, the 2017 U.S. Open finalist trailed 5-3 before
rallying to win.
Keys won four consecutive games to claim the opener. She needed
a tiebreak to prevail in the second.
The triumph was the fourth in a row on hardcourts for the
16th-seeded Keys over Kuznetsova and the 24-year-old's fifth
career title.
The 34-year-old Kuznetsova, twice a Grand Slam champion, served
for the first set but Keys held out before winning four
consecutive games.
In the second set Kuznetsova broke Keys in the third game and
went ahead 3-1.
But Keys, down 5-3, won three games in a row to go up 6-5.
This time, Kuznetsova fought back, forcing a tiebreak when the
ball touched the top of the net and rolled over to the other
side, creating a light moment that had Keys smiling in
disbelief.
Kuznetsova reached 4-4 in the tiebreak but then mis-hit a return
and Keys used a diagonal forehand for double championship point,
sealing the match after Kuznetsolva had closed to 6-5.
Keys delivered 13 aces and 45 winners against 29 unforced
errors. Kuznetsova had just two aces and 15 winners.
(Reporting by Gene Cherry in Raleigh, North Carolina; editing by
Tony Lawrence)
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