The Women's Tennis Association (WTA) has ranked Sharapova world no. 1 in singles on four separate occasions. She became the world no. 1 for the first time on August 22, 2005, and last regained this ranking for the fourth time on May 19, 2008. She is currently ranked world no. 2. She has been in five Grand Slam finals. Her Grand Slam final record is 3–2.
Sharapova made her professional breakthrough in 2004 when, at age 17, she upset two-time defending champion and top seed Serena Williams in the 2004 Wimbledon final for her first Grand Slam singles title. She entered the top 10 of the WTA Rankings with this win. Despite not winning a major in 2005, Sharapova briefly held the no. 1 ranking, and reached three Grand Slam semifinals, losing to the eventual champion each time. She won her second major at the 2006 US Open defeating then-world no. 1 Amélie Mauresmo in the semifinals and world no. 2 Justine Henin in the final. Sharapova's 2007 season was plagued with a chronic shoulder injury and saw her ranking fall out of the top 5 for the first time in two years. She ultimately won her third Grand Slam at the 2008 Australian Open, defeating Henin in the quarterfinals and Ana Ivanović in the final. After reclaiming the no. 1 ranking in May 2008, Sharapova's shoulder problems re-surfaced, ultimately requiring surgery in October and forcing her out of the game for nearly 10 months. Sharapova returned in May 2009 and was ranked no. 126 in the world due to her extensive lay-off. Since her comeback, Sharapova has won five singles titles (bringing her career total to 24) and improved her ranking to the world no. 2.
Sharapova's public profile extends beyond tennis, as she has been featured in a number of modeling assignments, including a feature in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. She has been featured in many advertisements, including those for Nike, Prince and Canon, and is the face of several fashion houses, most notably Cole Haan. Sharapova was the most searched-for athlete on Yahoo! in both 2005 and 2008. Since February 2007, she has been a United Nations Development Programme Goodwill Ambassador, concerned specifically with the Chernobyl Recovery and Development Programme.
In June 2011, she was named one of the "30 Legends of Women's Tennis: Past, Present and Future" by Time.
Personal life
Coached by her father Yuri Sharapov and Robert Lansdorp
Mother's name is Yelena
Started hitting tennis balls at age four; at six, participated in exhibition in Moscow that featured Martina Navratilova
Began training at Nick Bollettieri's Tennis Academy in Bradenton, Florida, USA, at age nine (which required a two-year separation from mother due to visa restrictions and finances)
Off-court interests include fashion, singing, dancing and movies (favorites are Mona Lisa Smile, Something's Gotta Give and Love Actually).
In second year of high school and studies via an Internet school.
Enjoys reading books in the Sherlock Holmes and Pippi Longstocking series.
Prefers Russian and Thai cuisine.
Favorite dessert is French crepes with Nutella.
Favorite drinks are orangina and virgin strawberry daiquiris.
Signed with IMG Models in November 2003.
In 2002, Sharapova bought a beach home in Manhattan Beach, California, a suburb of Los Angeles, but lives most of the year near the IMG training facility in Bradenton.
Maria has been labeled as a power baseliner by tennis critics and fans. She is noted for having an excellent double-handed backhand and serves, particularly for the power and placement of these shots.
She is also noted for having a good forehand. Likewise, critics claim that for her height, Sharapova has decent agility on-court. Being an offensive player, Sharapova is usually able to overpower her opponents or keep them on the run with sharp angles from the baseline.
Sharapova is ambidextrous and played left-handed until she was ten years old, before deciding to play right-handed. Although she almost always employs a right-handed forehand and double-handed backhand, she has one of the most accurate double-handed backhand shots and is known to occasionally hit left-handed shots as a result of her early left-handed training.
Maria has won every Grand Slam singles title except the French Open. She believes that winning the French Open will be a big challenge because her aggressive game does not suit a clay surface. She has never won a WTA tour singles title on that surface (yet).
In the year 2004, Maria donated $10,000 to victims of the tsunami disaster in Thailand. In January 2005 she donated proceeds of an auction for the Porsche car she won at the season-ending WTA Tour Championships of more than $50,000 to victims of the school siege in Beslan, Russia.
On February 14, 2007, Sharapova was appointed a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and donated US$100,000 to UNDP Chernobyl-recovery projects. She is planning on traveling back to the area
All about: Novak Djokovic, Samantha Stosur, Serena Williams, Anna Kournikova, U.S.open tennis, Maria Sharapova
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