The Queen of Clay?
The Queen of Clay is one match away from her goal, winning the career Grand Slam by taking the French Open title.
Maria Sharapova dispatched with ease an overweight and sloppy Petra Kvitova today, 6-3, 6-3, and played perhaps her best match ever on the red stuff. She was in complete control of this one from the get go, hitting deep shots from both wings, moving much better than her opponent, defending tenaciously, and serving brilliantly. Acing Kvitova on the final point of the match served as a proper ending to her dominant performance and hopefully wiped away for good any doubt she has of her second serve ability.
If you don’t like Mara Sharapova you don’t like tennis…or women. She plays a beautiful game, especially for a woman who is 6-foot, 3-inches tall. And she is a tough as a marble statue of Venus by Michelangelo. That’s always been the fascination for me, a stunning athlete who is rock hard competitive, maybe the fiercest player on either the men’s or women’s side. As my tennis buddy, Kevin Knox, said, she’s also the kind of chick who looks like she could kick back with a beer and enjoy a football game on a Sunday afternoon. Super cool Maria.
Maria could easily rest on her laurels and make millions off her looks and tennis resume but she doesn’t. She’s battled through serious injuries to return to the summit of the game and she’s ready to grab that elusive French Open title that she wants so desperately. It would have been simple for her to quit a few years back when she was hampered by a shoulder problem and was left exposed by terrible problems with her serve. She could have cashed in on her looks and titles, gone into fashion designing and modeling fulltime and sailed the world on a yacht. But she refused to quit and serves as an inspiration to young girls everywhere. Yes, you can be beautiful and kick ass at the same time.
Sharapova should have no problem winning her final match against 21st seeded Sara Errani, especially if she plays with as much confidence and panache as she did against Kvitova.
It’s Maria’s time!
