|
Friday, 02 February 2007 |
Japanese tennis star Ai Sugiyama beaten by Maria Sharapova
Maria Sharapova at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo beat Japanese home favourite tennis star Ai Sugiyama on Friday.
Born in Yokohama, Japan, Ai Sugiyama has an impressive record and was expected to win when playing in her home country. Turning professional in 1992, Ai Sugiyama has already won 6 singles titles and 33 doubles titles, including three Grand Slam women's doubles in her career so far.
After Maria Sharapova had struggled past Francesca Schiavone in the previous round, she battled her way back to defeat Ai Sugiyama 4-6 6-0 6-1 and in so doing to set up a semi-final with Ana Ivanovic.
"It's never easy against Sugiyama," said Maria Sharapova, commenting on what a tough opponent to beat Ai Sugiyama is, and she added: "She had the crowd behind her and was able to take the first set, but I'm glad I was able to come back and win."
Ai Sugiyama is known for playing an aggressive game and Maria Sharapova commented on this and her own difficulties in playing against her early on when it wasn't so clear that she would be the winner.
"She was playing aggressively in the first set and I wasn't making my shots," Maria Sharapova explained.
Comment on this article
Leave your comments (Show/Hide Form)
Other Visitors Comments
There are no comments currently....
|
|
Last Updated ( Wednesday, 07 February 2007 )
|
More Sports 
