Maria Sharapova
Maria Sharapova
Maria Yuryevna Sharapova; born April 19, 1987) is a Russian professional tennis player. A United States resident since 1994, Sharapova has competed on the WTA tour since 2001. She has been ranked world No. 1 in singles by the WTA on five separate occasions, for a total of 21 weeks. She is one of ten women, and the only Russian, to hold the career Grand Slam. She is also an Olympic medalist, having earned silver for Russia in women's singles...
NationalityRussian
ProfessionTennis Player
Date of Birth19 April 1987
CityNyagan, Russia
CountryRussian Federation
It was tough. I couldn't put two points together. I was tired from my previous match, and now I need some time off.
The surface here is very dangerous as you can see from today's match.
Reaching the No. 1 ranking has been a lifelong goal of mine, and achieving it here in Los Angeles would have been a dream come true. I am eager to get back to feeling 100 percent healthy and playing as soon as possible.
I got off to a great start and then maybe I wasn't aggressive enough and let her into the match in the second set. I don't know exactly what happened, I just lost my concentration a bit, but was able to get back on track in the final set.
I go there to play and would like to play against strong opponents. I always enjoy high-level competition,
I grew a few centimeters this year and I'm still getting used to my height,
Mentally, ... I wasn't there. I didn't have any motivation. But I was better in the third set; I started making the great passing shots that I needed to break her.
Mentally it was pretty tough, when you know you've got a very patient opponent and you know that it's really hot out there.
Of course, it's a surprise, but Kim has not played in a while, and it's hard to come back and play your best tennis. I just knew I had to worry about my match.
My dad was my wake-up call and he said, 'Good morning, champion,' ... He is really happy. My mom called later, and she is really happy.
But it would mean a lot. I don't think I've shown New York how I can play tennis. Hopefully I can put together some good matches for my New York fans.
But strange things do happen in tennis and today's match was one of them.
But coming here for the first time in years it made me feel even more so.
I was sick, down with flu and an upper respiratory illness.