Maria Sharapova: Grand Slam future in disappointment? – Tennis Special
Once the world number one in the world of tennis, Maria Sharapova of Russia is currently reigning the fifth spot in the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) World Rankings.
24-year-old Russian beauty is one of the most versatile women’s tennis players and has gathered a number of unmatchable feats in her 10 year professional career. Sharapova has won 23 WTA championships and 4 ITF (International Tennis
Federation) titles till date and have three Grand Slam crowns under her belt as well.
Sharapova has topped the women’s ranking on four different occasions, with the first one being in august 2005 and the last time in May 2008. She has made it to the finals of Grand Slam tournaments on five different occasions and
has stood victorious three times. Sharapova’s aggressive strategies in the competition and her resilience under pressure are praised by most of the critics, so is her commitment to the game.
The Russian tennis star came under lime light for the first time in 2004, when she beat all the odds at the age of 17 and went on to take the Wimbledon Championship title for the first time. Sharapova outplayed the reigning world
number one and the defending champion, Serena Williams, when she was on peak of her form and clinched her first Grand Slam title. She became the third youngest women tennis player to have won a Wimbledon singles title, after Lottie Dod and Martina Hingis.
Sharapova rocketed to the world number one spot the very next year and continued her sublime form to step on the hard courts of the United States for the last Grand Slam tournament of the year, the US Open. The Russian blew away
every competitor she faced en route to semi-final and took down the world number one Amelie Mauresmo to reach the final. Sharapova lived to the occasion in the final of the US Open, defeating the world number two, Justine Henin of Belgium, to bag her second
major title.
The 24-year-old kept fighting a career-threatening shoulder injury in 2007 and fell out of top-5 rankings for the first time in two years’ time. Sharapova made her third Grand Slam triumph in 2008, when she outplayed Henin in the
semi-final and then went on to defeat Ana Ivanovic in the final to claim the Australian Open crown. Her voyages at the French Open have been fruitless all the times and she has just made it to the semi-finals in 2007 and 2011.
Sharapova’s deteriorating form got a booster in 2011 and she has already won 33 out of her 42 matches being played. The Russian made it to the final of Wimbledon Championships this year but to the dismay of thousands of tennis
fans, got defeated in straight sets by Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic. To many critics, Sharapova’s defeat at Wimbledon this year is most probably her last appearance in a Grand Slam final and it appears as if the Russian has not much left in her to claim
another major title.
Sharapova’s abilities and skills are praised by all but her inconsistency and persistent injuries make her a bleak contender for another Grand Slam title. The Russian has broken into the top-5 rankings after a long time and it
might be her only chance to climb to the top spot once more. Sharapova needs to get the US Open title in her bag if she desires to top the women’s rankings again and with her current form, she might produce an upset at the upcoming Grand Slam to claim her
fourth major.
Disclaimer: The ideas expressed in the article are the writer’s own personal views and have nothing to do with bettor.com’s editorial policy.
Tags: