During her layoff, Sharapova has dropped from 1st to 23rd in the World rankings. From AP-
Maria Sharapova is returning to the WTA Tour this week, ending her injury absence of more than seven months by playing doubles at an event in Indian Wells, Calif.The Sun-Sentinel reports Sharapova will play in the upcoming Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne Florida. It's good to see her back, and I'm sure alot of male tennis fans wills second what I say.(I hardly follow tennis myself)Sharapova, who missed the last two Grand Slam tournaments with a right shoulder injury, will compete in doubles for the first time in nearly four years, teaming with Elena Vesnina.
What the three-time major champion isn't yet ready to do is play singles, according to her Web site.
"I am excited to be playing competitive tennis again," Sharapova said in a posting on her site. "The healing process takes time, and requires things to move more slowly than I would like, but I am taking things one step at a time."
Sharapova has not played competitively since pulling out of a tournament in Montreal in late July after winning a nearly three-hour match in which she double-faulted 17 times. The right-hander was examined by a trainer midway through the three-set victory, and she withdrew from the tournament before her next match.
Medical tests later found a torn rotator cuff tendon in the Russian's shoulder.
In addition to missing last year's U.S. Open and this year's Australian Open, Sharapova also pulled out of an indoor event in Paris and a hard-court tournament in Dubai last month.
The joint ATP-WTA tournament in Indian Wells begins Wednesday.
Permalink | Send To A Friend | Linking Blogs | Digg this!
Filed under:
Tennis
Comments (1)
The return of Maria Sharapo... (Below threshold)1. Posted by Bhuck Gorge | March 24, 2009 12:33 AM | Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
The return of Maria Sharapova might bring just the competition the sport requires. She may well be the shot in the arm that women's tennis needs.
1. Posted by Bhuck Gorge | March 24, 2009 12:33 AM |
Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
Posted on March 24, 2009 00:33