Deep down, Maria Sharapova believes that her money shots will return sometime soon, that she’ll be able to impose herself again, and re-discover the right kind of attack and consistency that once brought her to No. 1 in the world.
But at Wimbledon, Sharapova showed that she’s still a long way from the form that made her one of the world’s most threatening players even as recently as the start of ‘08, when she could tear the cover off the ball and dominate her foes with blitzing serves, returns and groundstrokes.
But in her 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 second-round loss to Gisela Dulko, the three-time Grand Slam champ only showed her best stuff on occasion, as she was often slow of foot and unable to torch serves, knock off volleys, or gain control off the ground. She defined the word “pressing.”
Like she did in Paris, where she won four titanic three-set matches before her legs gave out in the quarters, Sharapova fought like hell, but this time, after snarling back from a 6-3, 3-0 deficit and winning seven straight games, Sharapova lost her rhythm once again, as the creative Argentine mixed up her shots, took pace off the ball, served intelligently and drew the tall Russian to the net again and again and passed her.
Sharapova ended the contest converting only 16 of 36 net approaches and of those 16, few were quality volleys. While she’s an average volleyer, Sharapova is still lacking in instincts around the cords, often standing in the middle of the court and watching her foes whiz passes by her without anticipating where the ball is headed. If she’s going to become a dominant player again, she’s going to have to improve her net game, because as gutsy as she can be while playing defense, legging out one point after another is not her forte.
But the Russian still has a lot of positives in her game, including a blinding return of serve, hard and accurate backhand and a blowtorch forehand. What isn’t clear is whether her once feared serve will come back in full form. Against Dulko, she averaged 100 mph on her first serves, only one mph faster than a woman who is seven inches shorter than she is. “I just couldn’t go up and hit the serve with the same velocity as the first two sets,” said Sharapova. “As far as pace, I thought it really slowed down. I didn’t have enough juice on it.”
It’s going to be a long time before Sharapova will able to walk on court, deliver a cold stare and essentially win the match on reputation alone. The WTA is a no mercy tour, where just because you were once a great champion, it doesn’t mean that other ambitious competitors are going to take pity on you. If a player appears vulnerable, regardless of her reputation, her opponent is going to try and extract her pound of flesh.
When the former No. 1 strides on court, the announcer lists her multiple achievements, including her title runs at ‘04 Wimbledon, the ‘06 U.S. Open and the ‘08 Australian Open. But other players are aware that her severe shoulder injury has limited Sharapova to just a handful of matches in the past year.
As Sharapova said, this is a second career for her, one where she has to reestablish herself and one where she might be able to put losses (as well as victories) in a different light “It’s the first time in my life where I couldn’t practice for such a long period of time,” she said. “It’s stressful because you don’t know if you’re ever going to get the chance to be out here again, but you always have to be positive. Don’t get me wrong, there are many days where I was really hesitant, and you try to do the best things, but there are so many different paths, voices and so many opinions, and at the end of the day, you have to try and choose the right one.”
Sharapova chose to listen to herself, as well as to her parents, coach, doctor and a couple of close friends. The advice she received was to stay patient and not rush herself back. They told her that she’d eventually heal and be able to do what she loved the most.
Some of her critics contend that’s fashion shoots and commercials, but in many ways, she’s still the little kid who worked her way out of Siberia and spent thousands of hours honing her skills on back courts in Florida in the blazing sun. “Tennis drives everything, drives myself, drives my business, drives everything that I do,” she said. “ I certainly missed it.”
As great as she’s been, the 22-year-old Sharapova has never faced a challenge the size that she is now: nearly 10 months off the tour due to shoulder trouble and undergoing a massive amount of rehab, while the other players were able to work day in and day out on improving. As she noted, no one cares about her resume, only about how heavy and accurate her balls are. “I think there was such a big change in my life, such a big layoff, that it’s hard,” she said.
Both she and her coach, Michael Joyce, believe that what she really needs is more match play, where she can work out the wrinkles, get on the ball earlier and re-learn what it is that made her a superior player. The road will arduous and she’s sure to suffer more bumps and bruises, but when she arrives in New York at the end of August, Sharapova likely have more answers than questions. “I just have to work hard, play the few tournaments, and hopefully be ready for the U.S. Open,” she said. “This is not an overnight process. As much time as it needs, I’m ready for it.”
The L.A. Women’s Tennis Championships
Aug. 3-9, Home Depot Center. CSU Dominguez Hills.
Players: Maria Sharapova, Dinara Safina, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Victoria Azarenka, Caroline Wozniacki, Ana Ivanovic, etc.
Tickets: LAtennischamps.com
