It was an impressive victory for former world number one and five-time Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova as she ousted the dangerous floater Daria Gavrilova in the third round of the Internazionali BNL D’Italia. Gavrilova, who upset the odds and prevented a Muguruza and Sharapova match-up having saved three match points in her match against the Spaniard which ended at 2.10 am local time on the same day, looked fatigue but gave it her all to provide a tough contest.
This was a thrilling contest and Gavrilova was going for her fourth quarterfinal in five attempts here in Rome. Nonetheless, Sharapova was able to fend off the tough resistance from the Australian, closing out the win after an hour and 38-minutes of play, reaching her second consecutive quarterfinal.
With this win, Sharapova has sealed a seeding position in Paris, though it might be a tricky challenge as the Russian will now face a top-eight seed in the third round there. What is coming up for Sharapova would be trickier, though, as her quarterfinal opponent will be world number five Jelena Ostapenko.
Sharapova capitalizes on an early lead, takes the first set
It was a shaky start for Gavrilova as she shrugged off any signs of exhaustion by fighting off a break point in the opening game, with Sharapova making a couple of errors on the return once more. However, it was the Russian who stamped her authority across the court with some solid and unreturnable serving. She was looking unstoppable, claiming 16 of the past 18 points for a commanding 4-1 lead within a blink of an eye.
In what was the longest game of the match which lasted a marathon 14-minutes, Sharapova fended off multiple break points with some great forehands, preventing her errors from overwhelming her game. Nerves started to get to Sharapova, who committed several mishits as this allowed Gavrilova to save three set points, grabbing a break back and lessening the deficit to just two games. Serving to stay in the set at 3-5, Gavrilova was unable to handle Sharapova’s improved play, ultimately getting broken for the third time in the set and gifting the first set in the Russian’s favour.
Sharapova overcomes early wobble, takes the excellent win
Gavrilova had an impressive start to the second set, looking determined to produce a comeback in the match. The spin on her forehands was troubling Sharapova, but the Russian soon bounced back in the best fashion possible, rattling off four consecutive games while losing just three points in the process.
Her serves were certainly not at their best, but the power and accurate placement were able to help disorientate Gavrilova and ruin her rhythm. The momentum started to shift hands more often, with five straight breaks of serve closing out the match. Sharapova failed to serve out the match, but terrific aggression from the former world number one finally helped her seal the win after 98 minutes of play.