Facing Vika Azarenka is a nervy affair for Maria Sharapova. The Belorusian has inflicted some heavy defeats on the Russian the last few years, her more consistent ball striking and superior movement getting the better of her rival in some very one-sided encounters. For Maria to defeat Vika she has to play her aggressive best, going for winners, taking risks. If Maria is having one of her good days, like she did in Stuttgart and Istanbul last year, her ferocious strikes paint the lines and she can take the victory. If not, the errors mount, the nerves jangle as loudly as the grunts and we get Melbourne ’12.
This was their 13th meeting, a head to head led by Maria 7-5, and their first of the season. On a surface which Maria has flourished on the last few years, the Russian started out the favorite and quickly demonstrated why she deserved that status as she took the first set 6-1, taking control of the points early and overpowering the number three seed. This was how she had to play to win this match and she could not have executed her game any better.
But against Vika, matters are rarely that simple.The Belorusian can hunt down more balls than most and can expose her opponent’s weaknesses ruthlessly. Leading 3-2 in the second, with Maria serving, Vika held a break point. She went to work, hunting the ball down and hitting it back with depth and spin until she found what she was looking for: an error from Maria, this one from the backhand.
Vika keeps working away, holding her serve. She does not have to do all the work though; a rattled Maria helps her along. At 5-2, Maria serving to stay in the set, she stopped the point at 15-30, claiming the ball was long, a claim the umpire did not support. Down 15-40, Maria saved the first set point with an ace. On the second one, she went for too much on the second serve, hitting a double fault to save Vika from sweating it out for the set.
A deciding set and with Maria in this mood, it could go either way. We have to wait to find out which way it will go though. Rain comes and the players are brought off the court, a twenty five minutes delay for a couple of minutes downpour. The two come back on court, warm up all over again, the umpire re-introduces them and the battle recommences.
Maria seems more settled after the break. A word or two with the coach re-affirming what she seemed to have forgotten: her aggressive play on clay, executed firmly, calmly and patiently, will overwhelm Vika. Maria gets to work and breaks at 1-1. But in the next service game Maria double faults twice to go down 15-30, preferring to go for it on her second serve rather than be outdone by Vika’s returning. A backhand cross-court long from Maria and she is down a break point. She saves the first with an ace. Another backhand cross-court long and another break point. Maria serves out wide and hits a forehand winner off a short ball. But she cannot string together two winners in a row, erroring where in the first set she was winning. On her third break point down, Maria double-faults again, once more gifting her opponent an important point.
Unfortunately for Vika, she cannot capitalize, making errors of her own to go break point down. Maria takes her chance, hitting a forehand cross-court winner to move ahead 3-2. She fights off further break points in her next service game and strides out of trouble with an ace. At 4-2, Maria strikes a huge backhand return to break Vika and serve for the match.
Maria goes down 0-30. A welcome ace, a running backhand down the line winner, a forehand down the line winner and Maria has a match point. She errors, a missed backhand down the line. On her second match point, her backhand hits the net. Back and forth goes the score, break points, match points, and back and forth swings the Sharapova game. Winners, errors, service winners, double-faults. It is the latter which decided matters, two double faults at deuce dropping her serve.
Vika holds, steady as ever while Maria hits error after error. At 5-4, Maria has another chance to serve out for the match and prevent it going 5-5, as nervy a situation as a Major semi-final can be. Maria serves out side, steps into the court and fires a forehand winner. She hits a service winner. An onslaught of ground-strokes forces Vika into error. Three points she could not have played better in a row when she most needed them. Three match points. She needs only one. An ace and the nerves are settled. Maria Sharapova is into her second Roland Garros final in a row. And there awaits the nerviest of nervy affairs for Maria: a match against Serena Williams.
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