Maria Sharapova claimed her second Grand Slam title with superb straight-sets win over Justine Henin-Hardenne in the US Open final.

The Russian third seed produced some of her best tennis to overcome the second-seeded Belgian 6-4 6-4 at Flushing Meadows.

It was 19-year-old Sharapova's first major title since winning Wimbledon in 2004 and denied 2003 champion Henin-Hardenne what would have been a sixth Grand Slam win.

Henin-Hardenne broke Sharapova on her first service game to take an early 2-0 lead but the Russian immediately responded to level at 2-2.

She then claimed the crucial break in the ninth game and went on to serve out for the set.

The second set was another tight affair but Sharapova, aided by some superb serving, consistently played the better shots and claimed the decisive break of serve in the ninth game.

She showed few nerves serving for the match, winning the final game to 15 and clinching victory when her opponent netted a forehand.

The teenager jumped for joy upon sealing her win before telling the packed crowd her tactics which saw her attack the net more often than in the past.

"I figured I lost the last four times against Justine so I wanted to clip it 360 degrees. That's just what I tried to do today."

She also paid tribute to Henin-Hardenne's achievement of reaching all four Grand Slam finals in a calendar year, describing the feat as "amazing".

However, the Belgian cut a dejected figure at the presentation ceremony and the determined competitor will not take great pleasure from the achievement knowing she has won only one title and lost three of those four finals.

"She played great tennis these last two weeks and she really deserved her victory," Henin-Hardenne said during the trophy presentation.

Sharapova made a point to acknowledge women's sports trailblazer Billie Jean King in her on-court remarks after the win.

"I would like to thank Billie Jean King for being such an amazing woman," Sharapova said.

"Without her, we would not be standing here today."