Everyone loves a comeback story. From Andre Agassi‘s return-from-the-depths, No. 141 to No. 1 reemergence to James Blake‘s heartwarming, rise-above-adversity saga of ’04 (when the Harvardian overcame a broken neck, a nasty case of shingles and the loss of his father to cancer) to the improbable launch of Belgian Super Mom Kim Clijsters‘ “second career” at the ’09 U.S. Open, there’s nothing quite like a good ol’ fashioned, against-all-odds revival.
Maria Sharapova is busy crafting a comeback story of her own.
“Everyone’s going to have setbacks,” the Russian recently observed. “Some are going to have bigger setbacks than others.”
Her she-was-just-seventeen Wimbledon glory of ’04, her ’06 U.S. Open and ’08 Australian Open titles behind her and plagued by chronic shoulder pain, Sharapova underwent the knife in October ’08 and was sidelined for nearly 10 months. When the former No. 1 returned to the WTA Tour in May ’09, she found herself in an unaccustomed spot: ranked No. 126 in the world.
“It was unfortunate that I had to have a pretty severe operation at a young age,” said a seemingly wiser, more reflective Sharapova, now 23. “At that point in your career it’s not exactly the best situation…A majority of people who had shoulder surgery never came back to play tennis again. It always crosses your mind. But as much as I love the sport, I never gave up on coming back.”
“When you’re on the court, you have to put many things in perspective and realize that it’s not all rainbows and butterflies, that you’re going to have your days and moments where it’s going to be not so fun.”
Through it all, the three-time Slam champ — a Roland Garros title away from a career Grand Slam — never lost her unbending will to win. And her trademark grunt-and-grind groundies were soon on display again. But on the advice of her doctors and her coach, Michael Joyce, she adopted an abbreviated service motion in order to preserve her revamped right rotator cuff.
The comeback trail has been rife with roadblocks, with more downs than ups. But Sharapova — who’s fought her way back to No. 15 — has never been one to give in. This January, she was knocked out of the Aussie Open in the first round by countrywoman Maria Kirilenko — the first time she had exited a Slam in the opening round in seven years. She bounced back to win Memphis before an aggravated elbow forced withdrawals in Miami and Charleston. Then it was on to Strasbourg, where she won her 22nd career singles title. Justine Henin showed her the door in the third round at Roland Garros, and after a runner-up finish in Birmingham, she fell to Serena Williams 7-6(9), 6-4 in a competitive Round of 16 clash at Wimbledon. But with each match, with each ball struck, comes clear, tangible signs of improvement.
“I always wanted that feeling of competing and hitting. First I was trying to hit a tennis ball for more than a few minutes a day. Then it was trying to get back to competition because that’s what I love,” said Sharapova of her post-surgery career. “I woke up every morning trying to get back to that. When you’re on the court, you have to put many things in perspective and realize that it’s not all rainbows and butterflies, that you’re going to have your days and moments where it’s going to be not so fun.”
Will the Siberian-born Sharapova’s comeback story include a fairytale ending, in which she (rebuilt shoulder and all) once again hoists Grand Slam hardware? Or is her best tennis behind her? Only time will tell. But one thing’s for sure. Maria Yuryevna Sharapova still believes in herself (and so does Nike, which signed her to an eight-year, $70 million deal in January). And, for now at least, that’s all that matters.
“My joy in the game is up there with what it was before I got injured — maybe even more so, because it was taken away from me for such a long period of time that it made me realize how blessed you are when you’re actually on the court,” she said. “You’re able to hit a tennis ball for an hour a day, and be good at what you do. It’s a really good feeling when you go to your job and you know that you’re pretty darn good at what you do and that you can be better, that you can be holding trophies. It makes you want to work harder.”
