Sharapova’s fairy tale quest halted
STAGE SET AS WILLIAMS TAKES ON KVITOVA History to be made at US Open with a first appearance in Grand Slam final beckoning for one of four players in men’s draw.
Maria Sharapova’s Grand Slam return after a 15-month doping ban ended Sunday with a fourth-round defeat at the US Open, but the former world No 1 considered it a major step in her comeback.
Latvian 16th seed Anastasija Sevastova rallied to eliminate the five-time Grand Slam champion 5-7, 6-4, 6-2 at Arthur Ashe Stadium, booking a quarterfinal against American Sloane Stephens, who ousted Germany’s Julia Goerges 6-3, 3-6, 6-1.
Sharapova, the 2006 US Open winner, was able to find the positives after making 51 unforced errors to only 14 by Sevastova, whose 21 winners were half the 30-year-old Russian’s total.
“Reflecting back on the week, I can be happy,” Sharapova said. “It has been a really great ride. Ultimately, I can take a lot from this week.”
Today’s other quarterfinal will match Czech 13th seed Petra Kvitova, a two-time Wimbledon champion, against ninth seeded American Venus Williams, seeking her eighth Slam title and third US Open crown.
Kvitova eliminated Spanish third seed and two-time Slam winner Garbine Muguruza 7-6 (7/3), 6-3, while Williams beat 35th-ranked Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro 6-3, 3-6, 6-1.
In Sharapova’s first Slam since she tested positive for the banned blood booster meldonium at the 2016 Australian Open, she ousted second-ranked Simona Halep in the first round and served notice to any contender her game remains formidable.
Sharapova is expected to jump from 146th to around 100th in the world rankings.
Williams is the oldest woman entered at 37 and looks to reach her third Grand Slam final of the year, a feat she hasn’t reached since 2002.
“I’m focused on myself and trying to be as aggressive as possible,” Williams said. “Nobody ever gives you a Slam. You’ve got to take it and I’m going to try and take it.”
Kvitova, 4-1 all-time against Williams, missed five months after a knife-wielding home intruder injured her left hand last December.
“It was just a journey I didn’t know how it would end. If it ends here on the big stage it’s a happy end,” she said.
In a men’s draw assured of producing a first-time Slam finalist, Spanish 12th seed Pablo Carreno Busta meets Argentine 29th seed Diego Schwartzman in the lasteight, while 28th seed Kevin Anderson meets US 17th seed Sam Querrey, who beat German Mischa Zverev 6-2, 6-2, 6-1. – AFP