Maria Sharapova Biography

Summary

"Maria Yuryevna Sharapova" ( ) (born April 19, 1987) is a Russian professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. As of November 19, 2007, she is the fifth-ranked female player in the world. At the end of 2006, she was the world's highest-paid female athlete.

Her family name in English is often stressed on "third" syllable (Sharap"ó"va), whereas the original Russian is stressed on the "second" syllable (Shar"á"pova), and in other countries even on the first syllable (Sh"á"rapova).

Sharapova has won two Grand Slam singles titles. She is a former U.S. Open champion, having defeated Justine Henin in the final of the 2006 U.S. Open. Two years earlier, she defeated Serena Williams in the final at Wimbledon.

In 2006 Sharapova signed a lifetime endorsment deal with Prince Sports, Inc., a longtime sponsor of Sharapova. She currently plays with the O3 White racquet.

Playing style

Sharapova has been labelled as an offensive baseliner by tennis critics and fans. She is noted for having an excellent double-handed backhand and serves; particularly for the power and placement of these shots. She also is noted for having a good forehand. Likewise, critics claim that for her height, Sharapova has decent agility on-court. Being an offensive player, Sharapova is usually able to overpower her opponents or keep them on the run with sharp angles from the baseline. However she is not known for being among the strongest of defensive players. She can lose precision on her groundstrokes when she is put on the run herself, a weakness that the best all-around players will exploit. Sharapova is also not a natural volleyer. Instead she typically uses a powerful 'swinging' volley for net approaches. Sharapova usually serves for placement but uses enough power on her first and second serve that attacking that stroke is very difficult for her opponents.

Due to her shoulder injuries, Sharapova has adopted a new service action with a shorter backswing. Sharapova's first and second serve became less effective during the majority of the 2007 season. Previously, Sharapova had an elongated backswing to generate power on her serve; however, as a trade-off, the swing also placed incredible strain on her shoulder, leading to Sharapova's shoulder injury at the beginning of the 2007 season. It has been noted that in Madrid, Sharapova's powerful serve and sharp game have reurned to normal.

Personal life

Sharapova's parents moved from Homel, Belarus, to Siberia, Russia, in 1986, after the Chernobyl nuclear accident. She was born the following year in Nyagan, Russia.

Sharapova's father, Yuri Sharapov, brought Maria to the United States to attend the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Bradenton, Florida when she was 7 years old. She speaks accentless English. Her mother, Yelena, who could not come with them because of visa restrictions, followed a few years later. Sharapova has lived in the United States since then but retains her Russian citizenship.

Until recently, Sharapova lived most of the year near the IMG training facility in Bradenton with her pomeranian, Dolce, who is featured in one of her advertisements for Canon PowerShot. She has moved to Southern California.

Sharapova is good friends with other tennis players on the WTA tour: childhood friend and fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko, French player Tatiana Golovin, Serbian player Jelena Jankovic, and Slovakian Daniela Hantuchova. She has called actress Camilla Belle her best friend.

Career

2004 and 2005: Early Success

In 2004, a year after reaching the fourth round of Wimbledon as a wild card, Sharapova became the third-youngest Wimbledon women's champion (after Lottie Dod and Martina Hingis) and second-youngest in the open era by defeating Ai Sugiyama (5-7, 7-5, 6-1) in a quarterfinal, Lindsay Davenport (2-6, 7-6, 6-1) in a semifinal, and two-time defending champion Serena Williams (6-1, 6-4) in the final. She also became the first Russian to win that tournament. At the U.S. Open a few months later, she lost to French player and two-time Grand Slam champion Mary Pierce. During her match against Mary Pierce in the 2004 U.S. Open, Sharapova and several other Russian women tennis players wore a black ribbon in observance of the tragedy after the Beslan school hostage crisis which took place only a few days before. Sharapova ended 2004 with a victory at the season-ending WTA Championships, defeating an injured Serena Williams (4-6, 6-2, 6-4) after coming back from 0-4 in the final set. After losing to Sharapova in a semifinal of this event, Anastasia Myskina said: 'He Sharapova's father was just yelling and screaming instructions to her and I thought he just might jump right on the court at one point in the match.'

From June 2004 until her Wimbledon semifinal appearance in 2005, Sharapova won 22 straight matches on grass, including consecutive Birmingham titles and the Wimbledon title. She reached the semifinals of the 2005 Australian Open, where she held three match points against Serena Williams before losing 2-6, 7-5, 8-6. Off court, she was paid for numerous commercial endorsements. In February, she won her first Tier 1 event in Tokyo

Defending her Wimbledon title in 2005, Sharapova reached the semifinals without losing a set but then was well beaten by a rejuvenated Venus Williams (7-6, 6-1). Sharapova's streak on grass was ended, as was her quest to dethrone top-ranked Lindsay Davenport.

However, Davenport injured her back in the Wimbledon final, preventing her from defending the ranking points she obtained during the U.S. hard-court season of 2004. Sharapova had fewer points to defend and therefore rose to the No. 1 ranking on August 22, 2005. Her reign lasted only one week, however, as Davenport re-ascended to the top ranking after winning the title in New Haven. Sharapova rose to the No. 1 ranking again on September 12, 2005, despite losing in the semifinals of the U.S. Open. Sharapova kept the No. 1 ranking for six weeks before relinquishing it again to Davenport following the 2005 Zurich Open.

Before facing Clijsters Maria asked for a toilet break and during her time there a security guard noticed she was crying and slammed her fist against the wall and asked the commentator has she lost and she told him no. She came out as a better player from what her opposition noticed. Sharapova's loss in a semifinal of the 2005 U.S. Open against Kim Clijsters marked the fourth time that year she had lost at a Grand Slam tournament to the eventual champion: Australian Open-SF-Serena Williams, French Open-QF-Justine Henin-Hardenne, Wimbledon-SF-Venus Williams, U.S. Open-SF-Clijsters.

2006: A Second Major Title

At the 2006 Australian Open, Sharapova lost in the semifinals to Justine Henin-Hardenne 4-6, 6-1, 6-4, the only match of the year that she lost after winning the first set.

Sharapova claimed her first title of 2006 and eleventh of her career at the Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells, California, a Tier 1 event at which she was the third seed. Sharapova and No. 4 seed Elena Dementieva became the first Russians to reach the event's final, with Sharapova triumphing 6-1, 6-2. Soon after, Sharapova lost in the final of the Nasdaq-100 Open to Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-4, 6-3. Had Sharapova won the match, she would've became only the third player (after Steffi Graf and Kim Clijsters) in history to win the Indian Wells-Miami double.

Sharapova participated at the 2006 French Open without having played any of the clay-court tune-ups. After saving three match points in the first round against Mashona Washington, Sharapova was eliminated in the fourth round by Dinara Safina 7-5, 2-6, 7-5, after Sharapova led 5-1 in the third set. Sharapova lost 18 of the match's last 21 points.

Sharapova welcomed the onset of the grass season but failed to add a third successive Birmingham title to her collection, losing in the semifinals to American Jamea Jackson.

For the second consecutive year, Sharapova was defeated in the semifinals of Wimbledon, losing to eventual winner Amélie Mauresmo 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.

Sharapova claimed her second title of 2006 as the second seed at the Acura Classic in San Diego, defeating top-seeded Kim Clijsters 7-5, 7-5. This was Sharapova's first victory over Clijsters in five meetings. Many believe that this win was the turnaround for this season.

Sharapova played at Los Angeles, but lost to Elena Dementieva in the semifinals. It was her only summer hardcourt loss that year.

Sharapova entered the 2006 U.S. Open seeded third after Clijsters dropped out of the tournament with a wrist injury. Favoured to reach the final, she defeated Mauresmo, the top-ranked player in the world, in a semifinal 6-0, 4-6, 6-0. Sharapova then prevailed over second-ranked Henin-Hardenne in the final 6-4, 6-4 to win her second Grand Slam title. She joined the list of eight players who had beaten the Top 2 players in the world to win a Grand Slam.

Sharapova won the Zurich Open, defeating Daniela Hantuchová 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 in the final. Sharapova then won the Generali Ladies Linz, defeating fellow Russian and defending champion Nadia Petrova 7-5, 6-2, to take her fifth title of 2006 and the 15th title of her career.

Until her loss in the semifinals of the WTA Tour Championships, Sharapova had won 19 consecutive matches. She finished the year with a 59-9 record and won more Tier I titles than any other player.

2007: A Rollercoaster, an Injury

In 2007, Sharapova reached the final of the Watson Water Champions Challenge, an exhibition tournament and warm-up for the 2007 Australian Open, where she was defeated by Kim Clijsters 6-3, 7-6(8).

At the Australian Open, the top-seeded Sharapova defeated the 62nd-ranked Camille Pin in the first round 6-3, 4-6, 9-7 on her fourth match point. The match was played in air temperatures that exceeded 40 °C (104 °F) and on-court temperatures that exceeded 50 °C (122 °F). In the fourth round, Sharapova defeated compatriot Vera Zvonareva 7-5, 6-4. In the quarterfinals, Sharapova overcame the twelfth-seeded Anna Chakvetadze 7-6(5), 7-5. She then defeated fourth-seeded Clijsters 6-4, 6-2 in the semifinals to reach her first Australian Open final and gain the opportunity to win the only Grand Slam singles title that a Russian woman had not yet won. However, Serena Williams, ranked No. 81 in the world, overpowered Sharapova 6-1, 6-2.

Her results at the next three tournaments- the Tier I Tory Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo, Japan where she was a champion in 2005, the Tier I Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells, California where she was the defending champion, and the Tier I Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida where she was a finalist the past two years- saw defeat at the hands of Ana Ivanovic in the semis by retirement 1-6, 1-0, Vera Zvonareva in the fourth round 6-4, 5-7, 1-6 (after leading 5-4 in the second set), and Serena Williams in the fourth round 1-6, 1-6, respectively. Sharapova's subsequent injuries: a hamstring in Tokyo and the shoulder are part to blame, in addition to a case of lost timing on her serve, most likely caused by the shoulder problem. However, she did beat a resurgent Venus Williams in the third round of Miami 2-6, 6-2, 7-5. Sharapova would thus be forced to miss most the clay court season for the second consecutive year because of injuries.

Sharapova made her clay season debut at the Istanbul Cup, where she lost to Frenchwoman Aravane Rezaï in the semifinals 2-6, 4-6, in preparation for the French Open. It was uncharacteristic of her to play a week before a Grand Slam.

Sharapova then reached semifinals of the French Open for the first time in her career. She defeated former top 10 player Patty Schnyder in a controversial fourth round match after being down two match points 3-6, 6-4, 9-7, then beat fellow Russian Anna Chakvetadze in the quarterfinals 6-3, 6-4. In her semifinal match she fell to up-and-comer Ana Ivanovi? 6-2, 6-1.

At the DFS Classic in Birmingham, United Kingdom, Sharapova lost in the final to second seeded Jelena Jankovi? 4-6, 6-3, 7-5. Her record at the Tier III grass court event was extended to 23-3 in 5 tries. Sharapova played in the Wimbledon, falling victim to eventual champion and three times before champion Venus Williamsin the fourth round 6-1, 6-3.

Sharapova was scheduled to play the Fed Cup for Russia in their semifinal tie against the USA during the weekend of July 14-15. However, she withdrew claiming that her shoulder injury that had been bothering her for most of the year was causing problems again. Sharapova was not able to play in the final versus Italy, but was flew to Moscow to be a hitting partner for her teammates since she could not serve on her doctor's orders.

Sharapova supported Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics bid, and the city was eventually chosen to hold the games, becoming the first Russian (as Russian Federation) city on doing so.

Sharapova then played her first summer hardcourt tournament, the Acura Classic in San Diego, California, where she was the defending champion. In the final, she faced #11 seed Patty Schnyder and ended up winning 6-2, 3-6, 6-0, claiming her first title of the year, 5th Tier I title, and the 16th singles title of her career. This was the first time she successfully defended at Tier I title. Sharapova had previously defended Tier III titles TokyoJapan Open in 2004 and Birmingham in 2005.

Her next tournament was the East West Bank Classic in Los Angeles, California. As the top seed, she moved into the semis after winning in straight sets 6-3 6-4 in 1 hour and 30 minutes against Russian rival and defending champion Elena Dementieva in the quartefinals. Sharapova currently leads the series 7-2. She lost to Dementieva in the semis last year. Sharapova was scheduled to face another Russian Nadia Petrova, but withdrew briefly before the match with a shin injury. She had already pulled out of the Rogers Cup. Sharapova clinched the US Open Series shortly before the US Open (tennis) in New York City began.

The US Open draw was released on August 22nd; with Sharapova seeded #2. She had a seemingly easy bottom half of the draw. She won her first two rounds against Roberta Vinci and Casey Dellacqua, dropping a total of only two games. Sharapova lost her third round match to 18-year-old Pole Agnieszka Radwa?ska in three sets. It was Sharapova's earliest exit at a Slam since she lost in the same round at the U.S. Open three years ago to Mary Pierce (also in three sets). Though her serve had looked back to normal during the US hardcourt season, the velocity on her serve diminished during the third set. When the September 10th rankings were released, Sharapova had dropped two spots to #4.

At the Kremlin Cup in Moscow, Sharapova crashed out to Victoria Azarenka of Belarus in the second round, 7-6(9), 6-2. Despite the tournament being held in her country of citizenship, Sharapova's lifetime record in Moscow is 2-2. Sharapova then withdrew from the Zürich Open in Zurich, Switzerland and the Generali Ladies Linz in Linz, Austria due to the continuing shoulder problems she has been suffering throughout the year. She was the defending champion at both events. Sharapova's ranking dipped to #6.

Resurgent top 10 player and former world #5 Daniela Hantuchová defied the odds and beat Patty Schnyder for the Linz title, thus knocking Sharapova off the eighth and final spot to qualify for the 2007 WTA Tour Championships. They were both exactly tied in points to qualify, but Hantuchova played over twice as many tournaments, thus giving her the edge. However, in a surprising turn of events, Venus Williams withdrew from the championships in Madrid due to medical problems. This meant that Sharapova was granted the vacant spot.

Maria Sharapova returned from a nearly three-week absence, including missing most of the indoor hardcourt season to beat Daniela Hantuchová 6-4, 7-5. It was the sixth-ranked Russian's first win since Aug. 31. She extended her head-to-head against Hantuchova to 6-1 (winning the last 6). Her second match saw her defeat World Number 2 Svetlana Kuznetsova 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 to advance to the semifinals. Sharapova now leads the series 4-3. In her third and final round robin match, Sharapova gained revenge against Ana Ivanovi? 6-1, 6-2 in just over an hour, thus evening the series to 2-2. Sharapova then defeated Anna Chakvetadze 6-2, 6-2 for a flawless 5-0 head-to-head lead to advance to the championship match. She then lost to top-ranked Henin 5-7 7-5 6-3 in a dramatic match that lasted 3 hours and 24 minutes. Sharapova ended the year as number 5 on the official WTA tour rankings, her fourth year in a row with a top 5 finish.

2008

Sharapova's first event of the 2008 season will be the J B Group Classic, formerly known as Watson's Water Challenge, which will take place on January 2-5.

Awards

;2003

Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Newcomer of the Year

"2004"

WTA Player of the Year

WTA Most Improved Player of the Year

;2005

ESPY Best Female Tennis Player

Named the country's best female player for the year by Russia's tennis federation

Master of Sports of Russia

Prix de Citron Roland Garros

;2006

Named the country's best female player for the year by Russia's tennis federation

Whirlpool 6th Sense Player of the Year

;2007

ESPY Best Female Tennis Player

ESPY Best International Female Athlete

Endorsements and media publicity

Canon Inc. - Sharapova promotes both their office and camera products. She has appeared in many of their ads and commercials.

Colgate

Gatorade - energy drink

Honda - Following her Wimbledon victory in 2004, Sharapova signed a one-year deal with the automobile manufacturer, but the deal was only valid in Japan.

Land Rover - In April 2006, Sharapova signed a three-year deal to endorse their vehicles. One source with knowledge of the deal said it was worth approximately U.S. $2 million per year. Sharapova gets a free Land Rover Range Rover Sport in Florida and a chauffeured Land Rover Discovery wherever she wants.

Motorola - a fee, plus a mobile phone and all her mobile phone bills paid, plus a share of the income of downloads from (HelloMoto/Maria) . She was criticized at the U.S. Open by some members of the American press for violating the United States Tennis Association's no sideline-coaching rule.

Nike Inc. - Sharapova has been known to wear somewhat eccentric or revealing outfits from Nike on court, best exemplified by a "Breakfast at Tiffany's"-inspired dress at the 2006 U.S. Open, which many admired for its use of sequins and futuristic neckline. She also has been featured in several Nike marketing campaigns, including one advertisement in 2006 that has her walking and riding through the streets of New York City and Arthur Ashe Stadium while everyone around her sings 'I Feel Pretty' until she returns a serve with her trademark loud grunt.

Parlux Fragrances, Inc.- Sharapova has created her own fragrance.

Prince Sports, Inc. - Sharapova has committed to a 'lifetime' of sponsoring the only tennis racket brand she's used as a pro. The endorsement deal will last until the end of her playing career and beyond.

Samantha Thavasa- Fashion.

TAG Heuer - In December 2004, she signed a deal with Swiss sports watch TAG Heuer to become their latest 'sport and glamour' ambassador. She is joined by other members of the 'Dream Team' of brand ambassadors at TAG Heuer which include, Jeff Gordon, Sarah Fisher, Tiger Woods, Uma Thurman and Brad Pitt.

Tropicana - orange juice

Sharapova's endorsements have earned her considerably more than she has won in tournament play. In June 2005, Forbes magazine listed her as the highest-paid female athlete in the world, with annual earnings of over U.S. $18 million. (CBS, the American television network, reported in August 2006 that the figure is over U.S. $20 million.) The majority is made from endorsements and sponsorships. In a later interview, she said, 'You know, one of the greatest things about being an athlete and, you know, making money is realizing that you can help, you know, help the world, and especially children, who I absolutely love working with.'

In 2005 during a photo shoot for Canon, a lewd photo was taken of Sharapova without her knowledge by Japanese advertising agency Dentsu. The company currently has a lawsuit related to this incident.

Sharapova is visible in and outside of the court for her looks. Sharapova posed in a six-page bikini photoshoot spread in the 2006 issue of the "Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue", annual magazine that debuted on Valentine's Day, along with 25 scantily-clad supermodels. Sharapova joined the ranks of other athletes who have previously appeared in the publication. In April 2005, Sharapova was listed by "People Magazine" as among the 50 most beautiful celebrities in the world.

In 2006, "Maxim magazine" named Sharapova the hottest athlete in the world for the fourth consecutive year.

In a poll run by Britain's FHM magazine, Sharapova was voted the seventh most eligible bachelorette. Voting took into consideration both 'wealth and looks.'

Product endorsement and equipment

Sharapova's first racquet (before she entered the professional circuit) was one given to her by a family friend.

Sharapova used the Prince Tour Diablo for part of 2003 and then used several different Prince racquets until the U.S. Open. She gave the racquet she used in the 2004 Wimbledon final to Regis Philbin when taping "Live with Regis and Kelly". Sharapova began using the Prince Shark MP at that tournament and had a major part in the production of the Shark racquet. She then switched to the Prince O3 White racquet in January 2006. She endorses Nike accessories, apparel, and footwear.

Activism

On February 14, 2007, Sharapova was appointed a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and donated US$100,000 to UNDP Chernobyl-recovery projects. She is planning on traveling back to the area after Wimbledon in 2008.

Quotations

"I am not the next anyone; I'm the first Maria Sharapova".

"Announcer" (after Sharapova received the 2007 Australian Open runner-up trophy): "And I'm sure you have a few words to say".

At the press conference after losing the 2007 Australian Open final: "You mean my speech was better than my game today"?

After a defeat by Serena Williams in the 2007 Australian Open final: "I look forward to playing her many more times - and winning a few, I hope".

When asked at the press conference after the 2006 U.S. Open final about her father's illegal signaling and feeding her during the match: "I believe, at the end of the day, personally, my life is not about a banana".

"Reporter" (after Sharapova won her second round at the 2007 French Open): "So, do you feel when you get back on court after not hitting balls, do you actually feel stronger and faster as a result"?

"I've been playing against older and stronger competition my whole life. It has made me a better tennis player and able to play against this kind of level despite their strength and experience".

"When I was working my way to the top of tennis, I didn't say I was number two, I said I wanted to be number one".

"I am both an athlete and a businesswoman".

"A great tennis career is something that a 15-year-old normally doesn't have. I hope my example helps other teens believe they can accomplish things they never thought possible".

Sharapova told Sports Illustrated: "People seem to forget that Anna Kournikova isn't in the picture anymore. It's Maria-time now".

WTA Tour titles (19)

Singles wins (16)

"Titles by Surface"
Hard (12)
Grass (3)
Clay (0)
Carpet (1)

Singles performance timeline

"To prevent confusion and double counting, information in this table is updated only once a tournament when the player's participation in the tournament has concluded. This table is current through the U.S. Open, which ended for Sharapova on September 1,2007."

A = did not participate in the tournament

SR = the ratio of the number of singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played

1If ITF women's circuit (Hardcourt: 22-4; Clay: 9-1) participation is included, then her overall win-loss record stands at "273-66".

References

Noteable Matches

2004 Wimbledon final - Beat Serena Williams 6/1 6/4. Became the third youngest woman to win the title at the All England Club, and the lowest seed (at the time) to do so.

2004 Season ending Championships Final - Beat Serena Williams 4/6 6/2 6/4. Sharapova came back from a 0/4 gap in the third round, and won her first Season Ending Championships Trophy.

2005 Australian open semi-finals - Lost to Serena Williams 6/2 5/7 6/8. Sharapova already led 6/2 5/4 but lost that lead, and several match points in the third set, and eventually - the match.

2005 US open Semi Final - Lost to Clijsters 2/6 7/6(4) 3/6. Sharapova battled back from 2/5 down in the second set and won it, unfortunately she lost the match.

2006 Indian Wells final - Beat Dementieva 6/1 6/2 and won her first Indian Wells title.

2006 Sony Ericsson Open semi-final - Beat Tatiana Golovin 6/3, 6/7(5), 4/3 ret. in a dramatic series of events. Golovin was forced to retire after twisting her ankle in a controversial third set. Sharapova did not seem to know her opponent was injured. Review of the tape shows Tatiana falling on her ankle as she ran after Sharapova had turned her back from hitting the winner. They were later spotted goin to a Los Angeles Lakers game together; Tatiana in a cast.

2006 Wimbledon Semifinal - Lost to Amelie Mauresmo 3/6 6/3 2/6. Sharapova made an impressive comeback in the second set after being 1/3 down. Sharapova rallied 5 straight games and won the set, however it wasn't enough in order to win the match.

2006 San diego final - Beat Kim Clijsters 7/5 7/5. Her first victory over the belgium, which granted her her first San diego title.

2006 US Open semi-finals - Beat Amelie Mauresmo, the world #1, 6/0 4/6 6/0. The first US Open semi-final with a double bagel.

2006 US Open final - Beat Justine Henin 6/4 6/4 to win her second Grand Slam Title. Sharapova beat Henin for only the Second time in her career in order to lift the US open trophy. This was only the eight time in history that a player beat the world's top 2 ranked players in a Grand Slam.

2007 French open 4th round - Beat Patty Schnyder 3/6 6/4 9/7. Sharapova came into the tournament with an injury, and even though schnyder had 2 match points, Sharapova faught and won the match.

2007 Season Ending Championships Final - Lost to Justine Henin 7/5 5/7 3/6 in a match that lasted three hours and 24 minutes, stated by most experts as the best match of the 2007 season, and one of the all-time bests.