MARIA Quits, Takes Swipe At Serena on 15 Year Anniversary of 'Win'

[Grossefavourite]

Emotional Sharapova quits in Wimbledon in 1st round

London - Fifteen years after shooting to global fame when she captured the Wimbledon title and the hearts of Centre Court, an emotional Maria Sharapova quit the tournament in pain on Tuesday, raising more questions about her future in the sport.

The 2004 champion retired with a left arm injury in the final set of her tie with Frenchwoman Pauline Parmentier who claimed a 4-6, 7-6 (7/4), 5-0 win.

Sharapova, now ranked at 80 in the world, served for the match in the second set but then needed treatment on her arm.

The 32-year-old had only returned to the tour in Mallorca last month after five months out to recover from right shoulder surgery in January.

But despite that lengthy absence, the cold facts are that the five-time major winner and former world number one has not got beyond the quarter-finals of a Slam since she returned from an 18-month drug ban in 2017.

"I'm still proud that I'm here. This is not the easy way. I think the easy way would be just for me to maybe do other things," said Sharapova who was close to tears in her post-match news conference.

"This is far from easy. I've never taken the easy route. I've always worked, committed, focused. Like I said, these moments are hard, but I love what I do. I still have a lot of passion for it."

Tuesday's exit came despite her serving for the match in the second set.

With that opportunity gone, she needed treatment on an inflamed tendon and her fate was sealed against a player who had been defeated in the first round at the All England Club on her last seven appearances.

The loss came on Court Two, the same arena where she had been knocked out by Vitalia Diatchenko in 2018 and Michelle Larcher de Brito in 2013.

This year, she arrived at Wimbledon ranked at 80 in the world and unseeded for the first time since her debut in 2003.

That was a year before she claimed the Wimbledon title as a giggling, gangly 17-year-old who celebrated her victory by climbing up to the players box to embrace her father Yuri.

Her attempts to telephone her mother from courtside were thwarted by the unreliable mobile networks of the early 2000s.

Fifteen years later, Sharapova has no intention of walking away from a sport which has made her a multi-millionaire and a global icon.

"I've dreamed of having a family since I was very young because I'm very close to my parents," she said.

"I would love to have that connection in the future with hopefully my child. I don't see myself having a child and then coming back.

"It's never really been a vision that I've had for myself. Therefore, I think that's still in the future for me."

[Grossefavourite]

The house that meldonium built. Quite nice, actually. No wonder.

https://www.architecturaldigest.com/sto ... ed-la-home

[djmm1962]

I'm confused, is having a family her dream but not a vision??

[Pyotr]

Seems some see/imagine what they want to see/imagine.

[Mytiwtiw]

2004 the golden age of tennis.

[Grossefavourite]

Tennis Player Cramps, Pukes, Perseveres, Cramps Again, Withdraws Due To All Of The Above

Giri Nathan
Today 10:24amFiled to: TOO DAMN HOT
5.2K
26

Alex Lebedev, a successful college tennis player at Notre Dame, is now working his way into the pro ranks by competing in ITF and ATP Challenger events. This week the 22-year-old was attempting to qualify for the Challenger in Lexington, Kentucky, which broiled at a high of 89 degrees on Monday. It feels even hotter on the hard court.

Late in the third set during his match against Vasil Kirkov, Lebedev coped with leg cramps so severe that he could not stand straight. Somehow he still clawed his way to 5-4, with an opportunity to serve out the match. That’s when things turned a little messy:

Play was suspended for about nine minutes while the vomit was toweled off the court in phases, as a very apologetic Lebedev looked on. When the match resumed, the cramps intensified, forcing him to withdraw.

The winner of this match won no money, but earned a place in a match that will pay out $260 to the winner. Sports are hard.

https://deadspin.com/tennis-player-cram ... 1836802084