Maria Sharapova's hopes of a title-winning return to the Australian Open were unceremoniously crushed by Angelique Kerber as the battle of the former champions ended 6-1, 6-3 in the German's favour.
The president of the French tennis federation (FFT) said he had a moral responsibility to deny Maria Sharapova a wildcard invitation to this month's French Open as the sport continues its fight against doping.
Russian Maria Sharapova ground down Carla Suarez Navarro 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 to win the Rome Masters final on Sunday, the 35th WTA Tour title of her career.
Maria Sharapova set up an enticing quarter-final showdown with Eugenie Bouchard at the Australian Open following a comfortable 6-3, 6-0 fourth round victory over China's Peng Shuai on Sunday.
Tennis stars Serena Williams, Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova came in their finest best at the 88th Annual Academy Awards at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood, California on Sunday.
Sharapova's quarter-final defeat by Williams at the 2016 Australian Open was the last competitive match the Russian played for 15 months after she received a doping ban while American Williams was on a maternity break for most of 2017.
Maria Sharapova continued her marauding form in handing out a 6-2, 6-1 thrashing to Sweden's Rebecca Peterson
Tennis star Maria Sharapova again tops the list of highest earning female athletes over the past year, according to Forbes.
Maria Sharapova, the Russian five-time Grand Slam champion who became one of the highest paid sportswomen in the world, announced her retirement at the age of 32 on Wednesday. The former world number has played only two matches this year, losing in the first round of the Australian Open, with her ranking sliding to 373.
Not just because Serena Williams looks capable of landing a 24th Grand Slam title against all the odds having returned from maternity leave and Maria Sharapova is seeking redemption after a 15-month doping ban with a third French Open title.
The news comes after Sharapova, who said the decision to end their four-year partnership was "mutually agreed", was beaten by 44th-ranked Naomi Osaka in the first round of the BNP Paribas Open in California on Wednesday.
Five-times Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova has criticised the International Tennis Federation (ITF) for not doing enough to make her aware that meldonium had been added to the list of banned substances last year.
"What I experienced, what I felt from her moving around in between my serving motion was not, I don't think, sportsmanlike, in my opinion," American Coco Vandeweghe claimed after her quarter-final loss
Former world number one Maria Sharapova has been handed a wildcard to the Wimbledon warm-up tournament in Birmingham in June.
Sharapova struggled to move on court and conceded the opening set 6-1, with coach Thomas Hogstedt urging the Russian to take her game to the next level or call for a medical timeout.
There was only a scattering of fans inside the stadium as Sharapova took to the court on Wednesday, but after getting into her stride she overpowered the 91st-ranked Diatchenko.
In the absence of Sharapova, Colombia's Mariana Duque-Marino moves into the main women's draw of the tournament
Maria Sharapova says she is not looking too far ahead after returning from a doping suspension but concedes she is eager to be competing for the biggest titles in tennis again.
Maria Sharapova's tiumph in Stuttgart on Sunday marked only the fifth instance a her decade-long career that the Russian successfully defended a title. Rediff.com takes a look at the instances.
Russian tennis chief Shamil Tarpishchev expects Maria Sharapova to represent her country at this year's Olympics in Brazil despite being provisionally suspended from the game after testing positive for a banned substance.
Wildcard entrant Sharapova returned to action this week following her 15-month ban, but has looked like she never really went away in winning her three matches so far without dropping a set.
'We really hope that Sharapova will still be allowed to take part in the Olympic Games.'
Maria Sharapova beat Ana Ivanovic in the final of the Brisbane International on Saturday in a display that bodes well for her chances at the Australian Open.
Sachin Tendulkar says he did not find it disrespectful that Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova did not know who he was, as she does not follow cricket.
Maria Sharapova and Elena Dementieva breezed into the quarter finals of the Stanford Classic on Wednesday, crushing their second-round opponents with equal efficiency.
Former American great Chris Evert has no issue with tournaments handing Maria Sharapova wildcard entries as the Russian former world number one makes her way back from a doping ban, she said on Wednesday.
The 30-year-old Russian, who has won five Grand Slams and is among the highest-paid athletes in the world, returned to action on Wednesday with a straight sets win over Roberta Vinci following her suspension for the use of banned substance meldonium.
Maria Sharapova has shrugged off Caroline Wozniacki's criticism of US Open organisers for giving the Russian centre court billing in her return to Grand Slam tennis after a doping ban.
Maria Sharapova's French Open hopes were shredded by a familiar foe on Monday, while Roger Federer plunged a dagger into French hearts.
World number one Andy Murray is against giving wild cards to players returning from doping bans but the 29-year-old understands why tournament organisers make an exception for "big names".
Eugenie Bouchard pulled off her first win over Maria Sharapova with a 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 triumph in the Madrid Open on Monday in a thrilling contest full of tension after the Canadian had called the Russian a cheater following her doping ban.
Former tennis World No 1 Maria Sharapova will be holding a news conference in Los Angeles on Monday to make "a major announcement", though no other details were given by her manager on Sunday.
Russia's Maria Sharapova battled past Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki to move into the Italian Open quarter-finals with a 6-4, 7-6 win on Thursday.
World No 3 Maria Sharapova withdrew on Monday from the end-of-season WTA Championship in Istanbul due to the shoulder injury that also kept her out of the US Open.
Former world number one Maria Sharapova will compete at the Birmingham Classic grasscourt event in the lead-up to Wimbledon, Britain's Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) announced.
Former World No 1 Maria Sharapova is expected to face a disciplinary hearing over a drug violation in June.
Farrington said the type of game the Russian star plays suited Sania better than any other player's.
The Polish eighth seed walloped Liudmila Samsonova 6-2, 7-5 to reach the Wimbledon semi-finals for the first time.
Maria Sharapova's reduced suspension for a doping violation is set to provide a healthy boost to her bank balance with corporate sponsors reaffirming their commitment to the Russian player. The 29-year-old can return to the court next April after the Court of Arbitration for Sport reduced her two-year ban by nine months on Tuesday. Sharapova's stunning admission in March that she had tested positive for meldonium at the Australian Open, and her subsequent ban by the International Tennis Federation, saw a number of sponsors distance themselves from her.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances