Maria Sharapova, Women's Tennis | featured news

Maria Sharapova's stomach ache turned out to be nothing more than that. That lopsided loss she suffered at the Olympics — well, that may have only been a false alarm, as well. Playing her first match since a blowout loss to Serena Williams in London and a stomach virus that forced her out of two tuneup tournaments, Sharapova returned to tennis in fine fashion Monday at the U.S. Open.

Serena Williams turns her highly-anticipated match up with Russia's Maria Sharapova into a clinic on Centre Court. After Williams dominates 6-0, 6-1 in the final, she dances in celebration. Serena WIlliams became only the second woman to complete a career Golden Slam, winning the most lopsided women's final in Olympic history Saturday by beating Maria Sharapova 6-0, 6-1. The victory completed a remarkable run of domination by the No. 4-seeded Williams, who lost only 17 games in six matches en route to her first singles gold medal. She went 13-0 this summer at the All England Club, where she won her fifth Wimbledon title a month ago.

The shot that doomed Maria Sharapova on what was a manic middle Monday whizzed past at 108 miles per hour, a first-rate second serve that crowned her third Round of 16 exit at Wimbledon in six years. This loss, though — this was different.

Maria Sharapova defeated Sara Errani 6-3, 6-2, to win the French Open and become the 10th woman to win a career Grand Slam.

Maria Sharapova was nearly perfect in the first round of the French Open, winning all 12 games to produce a "double bagel."

Petra Kvitova won her first Grand Slam title Saturday by beating Maria Sharapova 6-3, 6-4 in the Wimbledon final. Kvitova was playing in her first major final, but it was three-time Grand Slam champion Sharapova that showed her nerves. The 2004 Wimbledon champion double-faulted six times, including twice to get broken to 4-2 in the first set. The 21-year-old Kvitova is the first left-handed woman to win the Wimbledon title since Martina Navratilova in 1990.

The women’s final at Wimbledon Saturday will lack the world’s No. 1 player, Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki, reduced to a competitive footnote by her early ouster.

Maria Sharapova crushed Dominika Cibulkova, advancing to a Wimbledon semifinal for the first time in four years. It took Sharapova less than an hour to beat Cibulkova, who upset Caroline Wozniacki, 6-1, 6-1. Afterward, Cibulkova couldn’t exit Centre Court quickly enough.