Vera Zvonareva sent world number one Maria Sharapova to a stunning 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 defeat in the fourth round of the Pacific Life Open on Tuesday.
In one the greatest collapses of her career, the defending champion failed to close out the match when 5-3 ahead in the second set and then completely lost control, giving up eight games in a row.
Sharapova ended the all-Russian contest with 47 unforced errors, including 13 double faults.
With the defeat, the 19-year-old is guaranteed to lose her number one ranking to Belgium's Justine Henin next week.
© Copyright 2007 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon.
|
Advertisement
Email this Article 
Print this Article