Sharapova on wild-card ride to Wimbledon
Russian star parlays invites into improved ranking, may also make French Open
ROME— Three tournaments into her return from a 15-month doping ban, Maria Sharapova has already gained enough rankings points to enter qualifying for Wimbledon.
The five-time Grand Slam winner took advantage of another wild card and overcame a shaky opening set to defeat 58th-ranked Christina McHale 6-4, 6-2 in the first round of the Italian Open on Monday.
The win earned Sharapova enough points to enter the top 200 of the rankings and earn at least a spot in qualifying at the All England Club.
“Winning matches will get me places, so if that’s where it got me today, then I will take it,” said Sharapova, who entered this week at No. 211. “The fact that I’m back and playing three weeks in a row now and three events in a row for me is a big deal. That’s my focus.”
Sharapova will learn on Tuesday if she will be granted a wild card for the French Open this month, with Roland Garros organizers planning an announcement on Facebook.
“I won’t be following it live. I will be focused on my match, as I’m playing tomorrow,” Sharapova said, adding that she would accept a qualifying wild card. “Nothing is a disappoint- ment after being away from the game for 15 months.”
Sharapova was broken by McHale in the opening game and went on to drop serve twice more in the first set before finding her groove.
Tournament organizers were criticized for giving a wild card to Shara- pova instead of former French Open champion Francesca Schiavone, an Italian. But fans cheered and held up signs of encouragement for Sharapova, a three-time Rome champion.
Sharapova’s next opponent will be Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, who beat former French Open finalist Lucie Safa- rova 7-5, 4-6, 6-3. Sharapova could face top-ranked Angelique Kerber in the third round.
Sharapova edged Lucic-Baroni in Madrid last week but then lost to Canadian Eugenie Bouchard.
McHale was able to run down balls in the corners and make Sharapova play extra shots, which she often missed.
But once the second set began, Sharapova was in total control. While there were signs of rustiness in Sharapova’s game, she led 21-7 in winners and committed 22 unforced errors to McHale’s 25.