Maria Sharapova will make one more attempt to win the only Grand Slam which has so far eluded her when she faces Italy’s Sara Errani in the French Open Women’s Final Saturday.
Errani, who has never been this far into a major tournament before, defeated Australia’s Sam Stosur in three sets. Sharapova beat Petra Kvitova easily in two sets, regaining her world number-one ranking. This will be the 25-year-old Russian’s seventh major final.
Errani, also 25, is ranked 23rd in the world in singles.
“I was very nervous, but on the same time I was really focused on the game,” Errani told rolandgarros.com. “Maybe she had more pressure, so I just want to just think about what I had to do. Try to forget everything, forget where I am. Just try to think maybe I was more focused than other moments on the more important moments because I just want to forget and try to do what I want to do, put the ball where I want to put it.”
Errani showed a surprisingly powerful forehand and a strong will in her three-set match with sixth-ranked Sam Stosur. Errani won the tough first set 7–5 despite being down a break early. Stosur seemed tentative, missing a lot of shots and not trying for winners. The Australian came back more aggressive in the second set, using a powerful serve/second shot combo, moving well, and hitting winners whenever she had the chance. Stosur won that set 6–1.
The third set was up-and-down for both players. Stosur seemed nervous at the start, dropping the first three games, only to come back and win the next three. The rest of the set was all Errani as the Italian began fielding he r opponent’s serve, holding at love in game 7 and breaking Stosur in game 8. The Australian’s unforced error count skyrocketed to 48, while Errani made 86 percent of her first serves and hit 22 winners to only 21 errors.
Sharapova Rolls Over Kvitova
Maria Sharapova, absent the Williams sisters, has to be considered a favorite in any tournament she enters. She is even more motivated to win in France, though, as it is the only Grand Slam title she has yet to claim in her twelve-year career. In fact, this is the first year she has made it to the final.
With Sharapova, the question is always, will her serve be working in any given match? Thursday at Roland Garros, things didn’t look good for her as a strong wind made her unusually high ball-toss a liability.
It turned out not to be. Sharapova hit three double faults and three aces, including one to end the match. She landed 79 percent of her first serves and won a lot of points with a big serve and a big second shot. Kvitova played solid tennis, but the 22-year-old Czech was overmatched on this day.
Sharapova broke Kvitova at love in the fifth game of the first set, and again to win the set. Kvitova scored an early break in the second set, but couldn’t build any momentum. She was able to convert only one of her five break point opportunities.
“It was tough to play a great match because of the conditions. I think most importantly it was about playing a solid match,” Sharapova told Rolandgarros.com. “I think patience was very important today, because in conditions like this, no matter how good you’re playing or bad, so many things equal out. If you get frustrated by a few mistakes, it can let you down.
“I was also facing a tough opponent who’s given me a lot of trouble in the past. So, yeah, I was really happy that I was able to win in two sets today.”
Sharapova will play Errani Saturday; Friday is devoted to the men’s semi-finals, Novak Djokovic versus Roger Federer and David Ferrer versus Rafael Nadal, while Sunday will see the men’s final. Tickets are available through the Roland Garros website.
