Maria Yuryevna Sharapova ( born April 19, 1987 ) is a former World No. 1 professional tennis player and the world's highest-paid female athlete. Sharapova holds two career Grand Slam victories. She is the reigning U.S. Open champion, winning the 2006 title over Justine Henin-Hardenne.

Famous matches

• 2003 Birmingham quarter-final: defeated Elena Dementieva, 2-6 7-6(4) 6-2. As a qualifier, Sharapova reached the tournament's semi-final, defeating top-seeded Dementieva along the way. Although she lost in the semis to Shinobu Asagoe, she has began to elicit the media attention, not just because of her model looks as compared to Anna Kournikova, but also because of her grunts. Fellow players and spectators had complained of her boisterous style. Still, she followed this up with a fourth round showing at Wimbledon, equaling the best performance by a female wildcard in the tournament's history.
• 2004 Wimbledon semi-final: defeated Lindsay Davenport, 2-6 7-6(5) 6-1. The 13th seed Sharapova faced fifth seed Davenport in a match of youth versus experience. Sharapova was overwhelmed by the veteran in the first set, and was trailing 3-1 in the second set before she turned the match around, after a drizzle interrupted it. Although she was three points from defeat in the tiebreak, Sharapova fought back, consolidated her position to take the second set and cruise through the third.
• 2004 Wimbledon final: defeated Serena Williams, 6-1 6-4. Sharapova faced the top seed in the final. She defeated the two-time defending champion in one of the most stunning upsets in Wimbledon history. In doing so, she became the second youngest women's Wimbledon champion in the Open Era, and the first non-American victor since Jana Novotna won in 1998.
• 2004 Tour Championships final: defeated Serena Williams, 4-6 6-2 6-4. Sharapova became the second player to win the Year-End Championships in her debut. Trailing 4-0 in the third set, Sharapova won the next six games after Williams began to struggle with an abdominal muscle strain. She finished the year ranked number four. Albeit her tournament run was characterized by controversy, marred by accusations of other Russian players that she had received coaching during matches, as well as some critics' reaction to her fist-pumping attitude in the final, wherein she accompanied these with her "Come On" battlecry as Williams played throughout the second half of the match in pain.
• 2005 Australian Open semi-final: lost to Serena Williams, 6-2 5-7 6-8. Continuing a seeming rivalry, Sharapova served for the match during the second and third set, even holding triple match point in the latter. However, Williams came back to take the match and win the tournament.

• 2005 Indian Wells semi-final: lost to Lindsay Davenport, 0-6 0-6. Despite holding a 2-0 head-to-head record, Sharapova, then ranked number three in the world, was dealt her worst defeat as Davenport double bageled her. This marked the first time that a player in the top three was double bageled.
• 2005 Wimbledon semi-final: lost to Venus Williams, 6-7(2) 1-6. The match was billed as one of the best in years. The high quality match up featured long rallies, high-intensity groundstrokes just clipping the lines, and dramatic grunts. In the end, Williams beat the defending champion, ending Sharapova's 22-match grass court winning streak.
• 2006 US Open semi-final: defeated Amelie Mauresmo, 6-0 4-6 6-0. Sharapova defeated the reigning world number one for the first time in her career, bookending her three-set victory with bagel scores (losing a total of just 17 points in those two sets). It marked the first time in the Open Era that a US Open women's singles semi-final has been won with double-bagel sets.
• 2006 US Open final: defeated Justine Henin-Hardenne, 6-4 6-4. Coming into her first major final since Wimbledon, Sharapova seemed to be at a disadvantage as Henin-Hardenne has won their last four meetings. However, Sharapova dominated this match, employing an attacking style to claim her second major title. In so doing, the fourth ranked player in the world (and the tournament's third seed) has defeated all top three players (all of whom she has losing head-to-head records) during the summer hardcourt season (former world number two Clijsters in the San Diego final, number one Mauresmo in the tournament semis, and current number two Henin-Hardenne in the final).

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