Maria Sharapova takes crowd by storm at Auckland signing
Former World Number 1, Maria Sharapova seemed to be in hot demand at the Viaduct Harbour in Auckland, where she held a brief signing session to meet her fan base. The pro autographed items such as posters, mobiles, shirts, tennis balls, magazines and even
yo-yos for over 200 fans.
There were many young girls among the long line of fans; however, 63 year old tennis enthusiast Emily Poulsen also made it to the signing. She voiced the excitement which overtook Auckland at Sharapova’s arrival, saying, “I love tennis and I especially love
Maria Sharapova, so getting the chance to see her is amazing.”
The attention must be gratifying for Sharapova, who took the risk of wrist injury to play at the ASB Classic tournament (which will take place next week). This is the first time she has taken part in the ASB Classic, and her participation has drawn in record
numbers of sales. Tournament organizers are already expecting some of the autographed items to be posted up on trading websites within the next two or three days.
Other highly-ranked players competing in the tournament are Yanina Wickmayer and Svetlana Kuznetsova. During the signing, both players found the time to test themselves out with a serving net, while Sharapova was busy with fans for almost an hour before
taking a break.
The players left the signing without speaking to the media; however, Kuznetsova did manage to grab attention by serving a tennis ball into the waters of the Waitemata Harbour just before setting back.
Maria Sharapova, who has won three Grand Slams over the course of her career, has been seeded first at the ASB Classic (due to start on Monday). She is currently the world’s highest paid female athlete. Sharapova has spent much of her time in New Zealand
practicing; she also took part in a hitting session with local player Sacha Jones, a wild card entrant into the ASB event.
Wickmayer – who won the tournament last year and will defend her title next month – is second seed. Svetlana Kuznetsova (winner of two Grand Slams) is seeded third.
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