Sharapova has been labeled as a power offensive baseliner by tennis critics.[3] Likewise, critics claim that, for her height, Sharapova has decent agility on-court.[3] Sharapova also is not a traditional volleyer, instead using a powerful "swinging" volley for net approaches.[4] She has also been criticised for her loud on-court "grunting."[5]
Because of shoulder injuries, Sharapova adopted a new service action with a shorter backswing after Wimbledon 2007.[citation needed] Ambidextrous, Sharapova played left-handed until she was ten years old, before deciding to play right-handed. She almost always employs a right-handed forehand and double-handed backhand. She occasionally hits a left-handed forehand when she is out-of-position to hit a right-handed backhand.
Sharapova has won every Grand Slam singles title except the French Open. She believes that winning the French Open will be a big challenge[6] and has described her movement on clay as like a "cow on ice."[7]
[edit] Career
[edit] Early life and career
The Chernobyl nuclear accident in 1986 compelled Sharapova's parents, Yuri and Yelena, ethnic Russians, to move from Gomel, Belarus, to the town of Nyagan in Siberia, Russia, to live with Yelena's father.[8] Maria was born the following year.
When Maria was two, the family moved to Sochi, where Yuri befriended the father of the eventual men's Grand Slam champion, Yevgeny Kafelnikov.[9] It was he who gave Maria her first tennis racket at the age of four, and she and Yuri began to regularly practice in the local park.[10] At the age of six, Maria attended a tennis clinic in Moscow run by Martina Navratilova, who said Maria was talented but required professional training, recommending the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Florida.[11] Yuri and Maria, neither of whom could speak English, moved there in 1994. Because of visa restrictions, Yelena could not originally move with them, but she eventually joined them two years later.[8] To fund Maria's lessons, Yuri held a variety of jobs, including washing plates, and until Maria was 12, she was transported to the Academy each day on the handlebars of Yuri's bicycle, as they could not afford any other method of transport.[12] Maria developed rapidly at the Academy and began playing junior tournaments.
Sharapova turned professional in 2001, although she played a total of just two WTA tournaments in 2001 and 2002 plus six challenger events. In 2002, she became the youngest girl to reach the final at the junior Australian Open and repeated this feat at Wimbledon later in the year. She also won three titles on the ITF Circuit and played her first matches on the main WTA Tour, including winning a match at the Tier I Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells, California.
[edit] 2003
Sharapova started playing tour events full-time in 2003. She won three qualifying matches at both the Australian Open and the French Open to reach the main draw, although she lost in the first round in both events. Later in the year, she was awarded a wildcard into the main draw at Wimbledon, losing in the fourth round to compatriot Svetlana Kuznetsova having defeated the 21st seed and the 11th seed in the first and third rounds, respectively. In October, Sharapova won her first title at the Tier III tournament in Tokyo and then won her second Tier III tournament four weeks later in Quebec City. She finished the year at number 32 in the rankings and was named the WTA Newcomer of the Year.
[edit] 2004
Sharapova started the year by reaching the third round of the Australian Open, where she lost to seventh-seeded Anastasia Myskina 6–4, 1–6, 6–2. In her next six tournaments, Sharapova lost before the quarterfinals in each, except in Memphis, where she reached the semifinals. Nevertheless, her results meant that she rose into the Top 20 on the rankings.
At the French Open, Sharapova reached the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam singles tournament for the first time in her career, losing to Paola Suárez 6–1, 6–3. She then won the third title of her career in Birmingham on grass, defeating Tatiana Golovin to win the title.
The 17-year-old Sharapova went into Wimbledon as the thirteenth seed. She reached her second consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinal, where she defeated Ai Sugiyama 5–7, 7–5, 6–1, and then upset fifth-seeded and former World No. 1 Lindsay Davenport in the semifinals 2–6, 7–6, 6–1. Her opponent in the final was two-time defending champion Serena Williams in the final, with Williams an overwhelming favorite with bookmakers. Sharapova, however, caused a major upset by defeating Williams 6–1, 6–4, to become the third-youngest Wimbledon women's champion (after Lottie Dod and Martina Hingis) and second-youngest in the open era. She was the first Russian to win the tournament and was, at the time, the lowest seed to win the women's event. This win meant that Sharapova entered the top 10 on the rankings for the first time.
Sharapova failed to reach the semifinals of her three warm-up events for the US Open. At the US Open itself, Sharapova lost to French player and two-time Grand Slam champion Mary Pierce in the third round 4–6, 6–2, 6–3. During the tournament, Sharapova and several other Russian women tennis players wore a black ribbon in observance of the tragedy after the Beslan school hostage crisis, which took place only a few days before.[13]
In the autumn, Sharapova won her third and fourth titles of the year in two consecutive weeks, in Seoul, South Korea and in Tokyo for the second year, before reaching her first Tier I final in Zurich, losing to Alicia Molik. Sharapova ended the year by winning the WTA Tour Championships, defeating an injured Serena Williams in the final after being down 4–0 in the final set.
Sharapova finished 2004 ranked world number and was the second-ranked Russian (behind Myskina). She won five titles during the year, trailing only Davenport's seven and equaling Justine Henin's total, and she topped the prize winnings list for the year.
[edit] 2005
Sharapova started the year by reaching the semifinals of the Australian Open, where she held match points but was ultimately defeated by eventual champion Serena Williams 2–6, 7–5, 8–6.
In February at the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo, Sharapova won her first Tier I event. Three weeks later, she won the Qatar Total Open in Doha. To complete the spring hard court season, Sharapova reached the semifinals of the Tier I Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells, California and the final of the Tier I Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida.
The best result of Sharapova's clay season was a run to the semifinals in Rome, losing to Patty Schnyder. At the French Open, Sharapova lost in the quarterfinals for the second consecutive year, falling to Justine Henin-Hardenne, the eventual champion.
On grass, Sharapova successfully defended her Birmingham title, defeating Jelena Jankovic in the final to extend her winning streak on grass to 19 matches. She then was unsuccessful in defending her Wimbledon title. She reached the semifinals without losing a set, but lost there to Venus Williams, the eventual champion, 7–6, 6–1.
Lindsay Davenport, who remained the world number one, injured her back in the Wimbledon final, preventing her from defending the ranking points she obtained during the U.S. hard-court season of 2004. Although Sharapova also played very few tournaments in this time due to injury, she had fewer points to defend than Davenport, and therefore rose to the world number one ranking on August 22, 2005, becoming the first Russian woman to hold the position. Her reign lasted only one week, however, as Davenport re-ascended to the top ranking after winning the title in New Haven.
At the US Open, Sharapova lost in the semifinals to eventual champion Kim Clijsters, meaning she had lost to the eventual champion in all four Grand Slam events of 2005. Nevertheless, the points she accumulated at the US Open meant that she once again leapfrogged Davenport to take the world number one ranking on September 12, 2005, retaining it for six weeks before relinquishing it again to Davenport following the Zurich Open. To conclude the year, Sharapova failed to defend her title at the season-ending WTA Tour Championships, losing in the semifinals to eventual champion Amelie Mauresmo.
Sharapova finished the year ranked World No. 4 again but as the top-ranked Russian for the first time. She won three titles during the year and was the only player in 2005 to reach three Grand Slam semifinals.
[edit] 2006
At the Australian Open, Sharapova lost in the semifinals to Justine Henin-Hardenne 4–6, 6–1, 6–4, the only match of the year that Sharapova lost after winning the first set.
Sharapova claimed her first title of 2006 and eleventh of her career at the Tier I tournament in Indian Wells, defeating Elena Dementieva in the final 6–1, 6–2. She then lost in the final in Miami to Svetlana Kuznetsova.
Sharapova participated at the French Open without having played any of the clay court tune-ups because of injury. After saving three match points in the first round against Mashona Washington, Sharapova was eliminated in the fourth round by Dinara Safina 7–5, 2–6, 7–5, after Sharapova led 5–1 in the third set before losing 18 of the match's last 21 points.
An attempt to add a third successive Birmingham title to her collection failed for Sharapova as she lost in the semifinals to American Jamea Jackson. At Wimbledon, Sharapova was defeated in the semifinals for the second consecutive year, losing to eventual champion and world number one Amelie Mauresmo 6–3, 3–6, 6–2, her fifth consecutive defeat in a Grand Slam semifinal.
Sharapova claimed her second title of 2006 at the Tier I Acura Classic in San Diego, defeating top-seeded Kim Clijsters 7–5, 7–5, her first victory over the Belgian. She then played in Los Angeles, losing to Dementieva in the semifinals, her only summer hardcourt loss of the year.
As the third seed at the US Open, Sharapova reached the quarterfinals without losing a set, before defeating Tatiana Golovin 7–6, 7–6 in the quarterfinals. She then defeated Mauresmo in a semifinal 6–0, 4–6, 6–0, and finally prevailed over second-ranked Henin-Hardenne 6–4, 6–4 to win her second Grand Slam singles title, having dropped just one set en route, and joining the list of eight players who had beaten the top two players in the world to win a Grand Slam singles title.[citation needed]
In the autumn, Sharapova won the tournaments in Zurich (defeating Daniela Hantuchova in the final) and Linz (defeating Nadia Petrova in the final). At the WTA Tour Championships, she won all three of her round-robin matches in straight sets to extend her winning streak to 19 matches, but then lost to eventual champion Henin-Hardenne.
Sharapova finished the year at number two and, for the second year, as the top Russian player. During the year, she won five titles (second only to Henin-Hardenne's six), including three Tier I titles, more than any other player.
[edit] 2007
Sharapova reached the final of the JB Group Classic, an exhibition tournament in Hong Kong, where she was defeated by Kim Clijsters 6–3, 7–6(8). As the top seed at the Australian Open (due to top-ranked Justine Henin's withdrawal), she came within two points from defeat in the first round against 62nd-ranked Camille Pin, but ultimately won 6–3, 4–6, 9–7. In the semifinals, Sharapova defeated fourth-seeded Clijsters to reach her first Australian Open final and gain the opportunity to win the only Grand Slam singles title that a Russian woman had not yet won. However, Serena Williams, ranked 81st, overpowered Sharapova 6–1, 6–2 in the final, though reaching the final allowed Sharapova to recapture the world number one ranking.
Partly due to hamstring and shoulder injuries that reduced the effectiveness of her serve, Sharapova did not win any of her next three tournaments, retiring from her semifinal match against Ana Ivanovic in Tokyo, losing to Vera Zvonareva in the fourth round of Indian Wells and succumbing to another defeat to Serena Williams (6-1, 6-1) in the fourth round of Miami.
A shoulder injury forced Sharapova to miss most of the clay court season for the second consecutive year, and played just one low-level tournament on clay in the lead-up to the French Open. However, she reached the semifinals there for the first time in her career (saving a match point against Patty Schnyder in the fourth round), but then fell to Ana Ivanovic 6–2, 6–1.
On grass at the DFS Classic in Birmingham, United Kingdom, Sharapova lost in the final to second seeded Jelena Jankovic. At Wimbledon, Sharapova lost to eventual champion Venus Williams in the fourth round 6–1, 6–3.
Sharapova's first summer hardcourt tournament was the Tier I Acura Classic in San Diego, California, where she won her first title of the year, fifth Tier I career title, and 16th singles title of her career by defeating Patty Schnyder in the final.
Sharapova's first summer hardcourt tournament was in San Diego, where she won her first title of the year, defeating Patty Schnyder in the final. In Los Angeles the next week, a shin injury forced her to withdraw from her semifinal match with fellow Russian Nadia Petrova shortly before the match started. Nevertheless, she clinched the US Open Series for the first time.
Seeded second at the 2007 U.S. Open, Sharapova won her first two matches with the loss of only two games but then lost her third round match to 18-year-old Pole Agnieszka Radwańska 6–4, 1–6, 6–2, partly due to poor serving and a host of unforced errors. It was Sharapova's earliest exit at a Grand Slam singles tournament since she lost in the same round at the 2004 U.S. Open.
Sharapova did not play again until October, where she lost to Victoria Azarenka 7-6, 6-2 in the second round of Moscow after a first-round bye). The recurring shoulder problem then forced Sharapova to withdraw from events in Zurich and Linz, at both of which she was the defending champion. These losses meant that Sharapova fell out of the top five on the rankings for the first time in three years.
Sharapova qualified for the WTA Tour Championships only because Venus Williams withdrew from the tournament. In her Red Group round-robin matches, Sharapova beat World No. 9 Daniela Hantuchova, World No. 2 Svetlana Kuznetsova, and Ivanovic. Sharapova then defeated the runner-up of the Yellow Group, Anna Chakvetadze, in the semifinals 6–2, 6–2. In the final, Sharapova lost to World No. 1 Henin 5–7, 7–5, 6–3 in 3 hours and 24 minutes. This was the 12th longest tour match during the open era.[citation needed]
Sharapova ended the year at number five on the official WTA tour rankings, the fourth consecutive year that she finished in the top five. However, for the first time since 2004, she did not finish the year as the top ranked Russian (the honor instead being held by Svetlana Kuznetsova. Sharapova also won just one title (at San Diego), the first time she had failed to win at least two titles since 2002 (when she played just three WTA matches).
[edit] 2008
Sharapova was the fifth seed at the Australian Open, her lowest seeding at a Grand Slam singles tournament since the 2004 U.S. Open. On the way to the quarterfinals, Sharapova defeated former World No. 1 Lindsay Davenport in the second round and Elena Dementieva in the fourth round. She then defeated World No. 1 Justine Henin 6–4, 6–0,[14] ending her 32-match winning streak. Sharapova then reached her second consecutive Australian Open final when she defeated an injured Jelena Jankovic 6–3, 6–1. She defeated Ana Ivanovic in the final, dropping only 10 service points during the match.[15] She won this tournament without dropping a set.
After the Australian Open, Sharapova extended her winning streak to 18 matches before finally losing. She participated for the first time in Fed Cup. In the quarterfinal tie against Israel, Sharapova helped Russia reach the semifinals by winning her two singles matches. She then won the Tier I Qatar Total Open in Doha, defeating Vera Zvonareva in a three-set final. In the semifinals of the Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells, California, Sharapova lost to Svetlana Kuznetsova, which was her first loss of the year. Sharapova then withdrew from the Tier I Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida because of a shoulder injury.
At the Tier II Bausch & Lomb Championships in Amelia Island, Florida, Sharapova was the top seeded player. In consecutive days, she defeated Anabel Medina Garrigues in the third round 7–6(3), 5–7, 7–6(1) in 3 hours and 27 minutes, her longest ever match,[16] and Alona Bondarenko in the quarterfinals 6–7(9), 6–3, 6–2 in 2 hours and 43 minutes. Sharapova then received a walkover to the final after her semifinal opponent, Davenport, withdrew due to illness. Sharapova then defeated Dominika Cibulkova in her first career clay court final. Immediately after this win, her ranking rose to World No. 4.
At the Tier I Family Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina the next week, Sharapova lost to Serena Williams in the quarterfinals 7–5, 4–6, 6–1 after Sharapova had a set point at 5-3 in the first set and served for the set at 5–4. Sharapova claimed the second set but then lost the first five games of the final set. Her ranking rose to World No. 3 as a result of this tournament.
Sharapova was the second-seeded player at the Tier I Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome. She defeated Patty Schnyder in the quarterfinals 6–7(3), 7–5, 6–2 but then did not play her semifinal against Jankovic due to a calf injury. Sharapova nevertheless regained the World No. 1 ranking because of Henin's sudden retirement from professional tennis and request to the Women's Tennis Association that her own ranking be removed immediately.
Sharapova was the top-seeded player at the French Open. In the first round, she defeated compatriot Evgeniya Rodina 6–1, 3–6, 8–6 after being two points from becoming the first female top seeded player in the open era to lose in the first round of this tournament. Sharapova ultimately lost to 13th-seeded and eventual runner-up Dinara Safina in a 2 hour, 52 minute fourth round match 6–7(6), 7–6(5), 6–2. Sharapova saved two set points in the first set tiebreaker before winning the last four points to take the set and then had a match point at 5–3 in the second set. Sharapova broke Safina in the opening game of the third set, but Safina won the last four games of the match. Sharapova lost the match despite hitting 65 winners and only 39 unforced errors.[17]
Sharapova withdrew from the DFS Classic in Birmingham, United Kingdom because of a shoulder injury sustained during the French Open.[18] Her next scheduled tournament is Wimbledon, for which she is seeded third. After that, Sharapova intends to play the Tier I Rogers Cup in Montreal, the Olympics, and the US Open.[19]
In Wimbledon, the third grand slam of the year, Sharapova is scheduled to play Stephanie Foretz of France in the first round.
[edit] Fed Cup participation
Sharapova's representation of Russia in the Fed Cup has been controversial. At the end of 2004, compatriot Anastasia Myskina stated she would stop playing for Russia if Sharapova joined.[20] At the end of 2005, Sharapova stated she was now keen to make her Fed Cup debut[21] and was set to play against Belgium in April 2006, but again withdrew.[22]
Sharapova later withdrew from ties against Spain in April 2007[23] and against the United States in July 2007[24] due to injuries. The latter withdrawal led to Russia's captain saying she would be "ineligible for selection" for the Fed Cup final in September.[25] However, Sharapova attended the final, cheering from the sidelines and acting as a "hitting partner" in practices, resulting in some of her Russian teammates implying that she was attending only to enable her to play at the 2008 Beijing Olympics (rules state that players must have "shown commitment" to Fed Cup in order to play). Svetlana Kuznetsova said, "She said she wanted to be our practise partner but if you can't play how then can you practise?"[26]
Sharapova finally made her Fed Cup debut in February 2008, in Russia's quarterfinal tie against Israel. Sharapova won both her singles rubbers, against Tzipora Obziler and Shahar Peer, helping Russia to a 4-1 victory.
taken from wikipedia.org
