2011 Sony Ericsson Open: Maria Sharapova vs. Andrea Petkovic – Preview
World number 13 Maria Sharapova of Russia will meet world number 23 Andrea Petkovic of Germany in the semi-finals at the Sony Ericsson Open on Thursday.
Sharapova and Petkovic will be facing each other for the third time. They are tied at 1-1 in the head-to-head record.
In their first meeting, the Russian thrashed Petkovic in straight sets 6-3, 6-1 in the round of 32 at the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati last year.
Petkovic took her revenge as she defeated Sharapova without dropping a set 6-2, 6-3 in the fourth round at the Australian Open this year.
Sharapova battled past world number 28 Alexandra Dulgheru of Romania in a marathon three set match in the quarter-finals, coming back from one set down to beat her opponent 3-6, 7-6(6), 7-6(5). At one stage, the Russian was just
two points away from losing the match. It took Sharapova 3 hours and 28 minutes to win the contest.
The Russian said, after her match against Dulgheru, "It was long. It was tough. It was not my best performance, but I gutted it out until the end. I was making too many errors and my opponent was playing really well and consistent
and even though I had the lead, I never took care of it. But at the end of the day I won, so I'm really happy tonight.”
While, Petkovic prevailed over world number 7 Jelena Jankovic of Serbia in three sets 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 to reach the semi-finals.
Sharapova has a 13-4 win/loss record this year. She started the season at the ASB Classic in Auckland, where she lost to Greta Arn of Hungary in straight sets 2-6, 5-7 in the quarter-finals. The Russian was defeated by Virginie
Razzano 3-6, 4-6 in the Russia vs. France Fed Cup tie in February. In her last tournament, Sharapova was thrashed by world number 1 Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark in straight sets 1-6, 2-6 in the semi-finals at the BNP Paribas Open.
In comparison, Petkovic has won 18 out of 23 matches this year. The German began the season at the Brisbane International, losing to Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic 1-6, 3-6 in the title match. She had a dream run at the Australian
Open, reaching the last 8 of a grand slam for the first time in her career. The 23-year-old lost to Li Na of China 2-6, 4-6 in the quarter-finals. Petkovic was ousted by Marion Bartoli of France 4-6, 2-6 in the third round at the BNP Paribas Open.
The winner of the match between Sharapova and Petkovic will play either world number 3 Vera Zvonareva of Russia or Belarusian Victoria Azarenka, ranked 8th in the world, in the final.
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