Sharapova shows fighting spirit to reach last four

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  • Never say die: Sharapova is delighted after coming through a tough quarter-final.

    Maria Sharapova remembers the turning point for her on clay. The day she went from mocking herself and how she performed on the surface to believing she could win the French Open.

    It was when she lost to Justine Henin in three sets in the third round in 2010. She says that match gave her the faith she could one day win at Roland Garros and two years later, she actually did.

    Incidentally, that match against Henin was the last time Sharapova lost a three-set match on the red dirt. She’s 19-0 on the red dirt since then and has won her last 26 of 27.

    Sharapova’s 1-6, 7-5, 6-1 win over Garbine Muguruza in the quarter-finals on Tuesday put her in her fourth consecutive Roland Garros semi-final – an incredible achievement she owes to that match against Henin.

    “I was playing in some of the toughest conditions I played in at the French Open and I won the second set,” recalls Sharapova.

    “I lost that match, but I got off the court realising that I could win this tournament. (Even though) I still had so much work to do.”

    In the quarters yesterday, the No7 seed suffered a bad start and made just seven points in the first four games to trail 4-0.

    She finally got on the board in the fifth game but was still being passive and had a very low first serve percentage. Muguruza on the other hand was taking her chances and saved the only break point she faced in the set, in the sixth game.

    The Spanish world No35 took the set on a netted forehand from Sharapova, showing no signs of nerves or fatigue.

    Muguruza’s first serve percentage took a hit in the second set and Sharapova broke in the third game when she sent a forehand long.

    The tide may have turned in Sharapova’s favour but Muguruza was still in it and she got the break back leveling for 3-3 when the world No8 double-faulted twice.

    A clutch hold from Sharapova came when she was serving to stay in the French Open at 4-5 and the Russian rose to the occasion, proving why she owns a career Grand Slam.

    She hit a backhand down the line winner in the next game to get a break point and broke with some huge hitting, forcing Muguruza into some futile defending.

    And just like that Sharapova went from serving for survival to serving for the set and she aced to get a third set point and took it on a forehand error from Muguruza.

    Muguruza was feeling the momentum shift and the longer the rallies, the more errors she committed. Sharapova broke for a 2-1 lead in the decider when her opponent netted a forehand after yet another long rally.

    The fourth game of the final set proved crucial and it took Sharapova over 10 minutes to hold serve, but she eventually came through and she booked her spot in the semis three games later when Muguruza’s backhand landed in the net.

    “I'm excited and happy to be in that position again,” Sharapova said of making the semi-finals. “I have turned my results around. To have that consistency at this tournament, a tournament that was so difficult for me before…”

    She next faces Canadian No18 seed Eugenie Bouchard, who reached her second consecutive major semi-final with a three-set battling victory, similar to Sharapova’s.

    Playing simultaneously, Bouchard exhibited fighting qualities that have forced many to liken her to the Russian star.

    The 20-year-old fought back from 2-5 down in the opening set and 1-4 down in the decider to take out the petite Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro 7-6 (4), 2-6, 7-5.

    “At the end of the day, whether I win or lose, I want to at least leave it all there and try and at least battle,” said Bouchard. “I'm proud of the way I did that in both the first and third. She's a great player and a really good clay courter, as well. I knew it was going to be a tough battle, and that's exactly what it was today.”

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