Maria Sharapova Routs Ex
In her first appearance at the United States Open since 2012, fifth-seeded Maria Sharapova looked a little rusty playing against her close friend and former doubles partner, Maria Kirilenko.
Certainly Kirilenko knew how to beat her (she has done so twice in seven previous matchups), and leading by 4-2 in the first set, Kirilenko appeared for a second to be the better Russian blonde playing at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Monday night.
That notion would not last long, however. Sharapova shook off the rust and won 10 straight games to advance with ease, 6-4, 6-0.
Sharapova, the 2006 U.S. Open champion, missed the tournament last year because of a shoulder injury that cost her the remainder of the season. But she has rebounded nicely this year, winning the French Open, her fifth Grand Slam title, and at Stuttgart in April and Madrid in May - all three on clay courts.
On the Flushing Meadows hardcourts, she committed just three unforced errors in the second set, while winning 11 of 13 points off her first serve and recording five aces, four in the first set.
Kirilenko was crafty, though, and featured a smooth serve-and-volley game that kept Sharapova on her toes. Tied at 4-4 in the first set, she won a miraculous rally down by 15-0 when Sharapova blew an opportunity to slam in a point. After returning the slam, Kirilenko then raced to the net to retrieve Sharapova's drop shot and drilled a forehand winner.
Sharapova said she has known Kirilenko since they were 12, and the compatriots have faced each other seven times since 2005.
Trailing, 3-0, in the second set, Kirilenko required a medical timeout to attend to an apparent injury to her left foot and ankle, and a trainer wound up wrapping the foot with tape.
This seemed to restrict her mobility, and Sharapova breezed to an easy victory.
Earlier in the evening, 10th-seeded Caroline Wozniacki was fortunate to sneak by Magdalena Rybarikova, a finalist in the Connecticut Open just a few days earlier. Wozniacki won the first set handily, 6-1, but fell into trouble in the second. She said she started playing tentatively.
Rybarikova won the set, 6-3, but leg issues flared up early in the third. Unable to continue, she retired trailing by 2-0 in the final set, allowing Wozniacki to advance in the Open for the seventh consecutive year.
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