The standard may have been questionable but there was little disputing the merit, and not since Steffi Graf in 1996 has a player successfully defended the French Open title until Justin Henin-Hardenne did so against Svetlana Kuznetsova at Roland Garros on Saturday.

That the 23-year-old Belgian did it with quiet effectiveness rather than many of the flourishes of which she is capable was of little concern as she rose into that elite group of players who have won five Grand Slams. She joins Martina Hingis and Venus Williams. Along with Graf, Chris Evert, Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario and Monica Seles, Henin-Hardenne also joins a group of players that have won three times in Paris. Perhaps even Graf's mark of six championships can now be matched.

"It's amazing," said Henin-Hardenne of Graf's achievement. "I mean she won here six times. She's a real champion. I think Sanchez and Seles won here three times and now me. It's amazing to be with all these names."

In a contest where the tennis was uneven and often poor but laced with some stirring games as Kuznetsova tried to force her way in, both players wrestled with nerves, Kuznetsova suffering most and on countless occasions furiously watching as routine forehands went long or into the net.

Henin-Hardenne took a 4-1 lead before one of those big Russian forehands into the high part of the net handed over the first set 6-4.

Kuznetsova came blazing back in the second set, winning the first 10 points for 2-0. But the consistency wasn't there and as quickly as the number eight seed had taken her opportunities, she handed them back as the champion squeezed on the big points, taking the set 6-4.

"I didn't use the chances I had," said the Russian. "I had so many. She served well on some important points. I felt I was in control, then you miss two balls and you lose your chance, you let her come into the match."

Henin-Hardenne's dream is now to win Wimbledon and in contrast to her compatriot Kim Clijsters, who has said she may retire from the game in a couple of years, the French champion is sticking around.

""I keep saying I want a long-term career. But if I want to do this I have to stay healthy," she said. "To stay healthy I have to take good decisions. So maybe it is more important the quality than playing too many tournaments. Wimbledon remains a dream in my career, a goal for sure. I'm not as familiar with the surface as here. It would be the cherry on the cake."

Henin-Hardenne has played Wimbledon five times and reached the final in 2001 before losing to Venus Williams.