Sharapova back in old routine
MELBOURNE: Maria Sharapova said yesterday she was delighted to be back in the old routine after a trying 2017 as she sailed into the second round of the Australian Open.
It was the Russian star’s first match in Melbourne for two years, having tested positive for performance-enhancing meldonium in Australia in 2016 and only returning from a 15-month doping ban last April.
And she sealed a 6-1, 6-4 victory in style with an ace against Germany’s Tatjana Maria in an hour and 18 minutes.
“I felt like I have got a lot of things out of the way physically and emotionally and mentally last year,” said Sharapova, who only returned to Grand Slam action at the US Open, where she reached the last 16.
“[In 2017] there was a lot of firsts again for me, playing the first tournament, first Grand Slam, and just different feelings and what it would be routinely. But it felt pretty routine today, just really happy to be back here.”
On paper this should have been a close match. Sharapova, who is climbing her way back up the tennis ladder following her ban, is ranked 48th with her German opponent one place higher.
But the gulf in class and experience between Sharapova, who has won 36 singles titles, and the 30-year-old journeywoman, yet to register a WTA title, was evident from the opening exchanges.
The 2008 Australian Open champion hardly looked back after racing into a 2-0 lead, holding her own serve to love and then breaking the German three times with ease to take the first set 6-1 in 32 minutes.
“Look, I’ve got shivers,” said Sharapova, pointing to her arm when asked on court how much being back in Melbourne meant to her.
“I cherish these moments. I love it here. It’s been a couple of years and I wanted it to be really meaningful to me. But we know it’s only going to get tougher.”
Kvitova eliminated
A year ago Petra Kvitova was recovering from a knife attack at her home in the Czech Republic, unsure if she’d ever play tennis again.
Any wonder that on her return to the Australian Open — a tournament she missed last year because of the December 2016 attack — that a 6-3, 4-6, 10-8 firstround loss to Andrea Petkovic didn’t really bother her in the overall scheme of things.
At the end of their match yesterday, Kvitova was in tears, but not for any bad reason.
“I was able to play anyway,” said Kvitova, a two-time Wimbledon champion.
“I felt support during the match. It made me cry when I left the court, when I heard those people supporting me. So it was great.”