The French Open has proved elusive for Russian Maria Sharapova. The 24-year-old won Wimbledon in 2004, the US Open in 2006 and the Australian Open in 2008 but has never made it past the semi-finals in Paris. The seventh seed – brimming with confidence from her victory in Rome before the French Open – said she had been working hard to prepare herself for the clay grand slam. ‘’It’s one that I’ve always said would be the most challenging for me to win,’’ said Sharapova after a 7-6 (7-4), 7-5 defeat of Polish 12th seed Agnieszka Radwanska. ‘’A lot of it is preparation and just going out there and believing in what you have done before and the way you prepared.
Physically, and mentally, knowing that you have to be more patient here than maybe at other points in other tournaments.’’ The Russian said she had no regrets about infamously calling her movement on clay a ‘’cow on ice’’. ‘’I’ve certainly improved. [It] used to be tough for me to move around and get back into position,’’ she said. Fifteenth seed German Andrea Petkovic, who defeated Sharapova in straight sets at the Australian Open, will be keen to cause another upset. The Russian has won their two other encounters on hard courts.
Petkovic, who has never passed the second round of Roland Garros, said she was not surprised to be in the final eight this year. ‘’I don’t feel surprised at all, because I’ve shown especially in this year and this season that I belong there and that I can beat all those players.’’ In the other semi-final, sixth seed Li Na continues her quest to become the first Chinese player to win a grand slam when she takes on fourth seed Victoria Azarenka, the highest-ranked player remaining in the final eight. The Belarusian will face her first real test of the tournament. Although she has dropped only 17 games in her first four matches, Azarenka has not faced a single seeded player.
Azarenka has never made it past the quarter-final stage of a major but believes she can make the breakthrough this time.’’I think I’m in a different chapter of my career. I’m feeling really, really confident,’’ she said. Na leads their head-to-head meetings 3-1, and beat the Belarusian in straight sets at the Australian Open. Azarenka said the different surface would be a factor in her ability to exact revenge.
