Sharapova Pulls Through Despite Injury
June 4, 2007
Maria Sharapova pulled through her shoulder injury pains to reach the quater-finals of the French Open, beating Patty Schnyder of Switzerland 3-6, 6-4, 9-7..
Schnyder served for the match three times, at 5-4, 6-5 and 7-6 in the third set. She was one point away from ending the match in the 10th game and again in the 14th - and she also was two points away from victory on 11 occasions.
When Sharapova pulled it out on her first match point, as Schnyder sailed a forehand wide to get broken again, the Russian covered her face with both hands and looked on the verge of tears. As both players met at the net, there was a mix of boos and applause.
Sharapova’s Shoulder is a Cause for Concern
June 2, 2007
Despite beating Alla Kudryavtseva of Russia 6-1, 6-4 Saturday in the third round at Roland Garros, Maria Sharapova’s shoulder is still a cause for concern, she has said “I can’t expect a lot from my shoulder this week, just try to loosen it up as the match goes on.”
Sharapova missed most of the clay-court season because of the injury, but she’s sure she’s not rushing her return to play at the French Open — the only Grand Slam where the second-ranked Russian has not reached a final.
Aravane Rezai beats top-seeded Maria Sharapova - Istanbul Cup
May 27, 2007
Aravane Rezai beat top-seeded Maria Sharapova 6-2, 6-4 on Friday to reach the final of the Istanbul Cup.
The 20-year-old Frenchwoman, who is ranked 62 in the world, was due to meet another Russian player, Elena Dementieva, in yesterday’s final of the clay-court French Open warmup.
“I am glad that I came here and I played a few matches before Roland Garros, though it is unfortunate to lose in the semi-finals,” Sharapova said.
Sharapova, who served seven double faults, is now looking ahead to doing well at the French Open.
“I have all the motivation in the world,” she said. “I have been working very hard in the last weeks.”
Maria Sharapova Defeats Nathalie Dechy in the Pacific Life Open
March 12, 2007
Maria Sharapova overcame a sore hamstring, brutal heat and a lack of match practice to reach round four of the Pacific Life Open on Sunday.
The world number one beat France’s Nathalie Dechy 7-5 6-2 and next faces number 15 seed Vera Zvonareva.
Sharapova said: “I only started serving five days before the event because I got injured when I landed on serve.”
The Russian has hardly played since losing to Serena Williams in the Australian Open final in January.
Sharapova MUST reached the semis to retain number 1 crown
March 8, 2007
Russia’s Maria Sharapova will be battling to retain her world No. 1 ranking as well as her title in the women’s draw of Pacific Life Open.
While top seed Sharapova enjoyed a first-round bye, Michaella Krajicek of the Netherlands booked a shot at the Russian glamour-girl with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Sweden’s Sofia Arvidsson yesterday.
When she does launch her defence later this week, Sharapova will be playing for the first time since 3 February, when she strained her hamstring in the semi-finals of the Toray Pan Pacific Open. She must reach the semi-finals here to maintain her world No. 1 ranking over Belgian Justine Henin, one of several notable absentees
Maria Sharapova Leads The WTA Rankings
March 7, 2007
Russian Maria Sharapova heads the women’s tennis rankings released Monday by the ruling body WTA but Belgium’s Justine Henin-Hardenne has closed the gap.
WTA top 10 as of March 3 (previous ranking in parenthesis):
1. (1) Maria Sharapova, Russia, 3,824 points; 2. (2) Justine Henin-Hardenne, Belgium, 3,791; 3. (3) Amelie Mauresmo, France, 2,933; 4. (5) Svetlana Kuznetsova, Russia, 2,710; 5 (4) Kim Clijsters, Belgium, 2,630; 6 (6) Martina Hingis, Switzerland, 2,361; 7. (7) Nadia Petrova, Russia, 2,071; 8. (8) Elena Dementieva, Russia, 1,869; 9. (10) Jelena Jankovic, Serbia, 1,724; 10 (9) Nicole Vaidisova, Czech Republic, 1,907.
