Kristina Mladenovic was the one to bring the biggest challenge to the returning Russian star and beat her in three sets 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 at Porsche Arena in Stuttgart. The world number 19 added another important victory to her march for a WTA title this season.
It’s been four years since the two last faced one another with a fight that Sharapova came out by the skin of her teeth. Mladenovic left a good impression at Wimbledon in the first round where she pressed in the opening set while remaining a threat to Sharapova. The Russian did win in straight sets but knew that beating the French star was going to be difficult. In their semifinal matchup, the stakes are just as high with the spotlight on the Russian in her return to the sport. Keeping up the pace continues to be her most important factor in getting the match off to a good start.
She struck a good footing in the opening game and used the same tactics when playing the returns to Mladenovic. Despite not being able to win the break, the Russian made it clear of her intentions to being on the prowl for a lead change in the set. She took it on serve followed by a break that was handed to her on Mladenovic’s first double fault of the set. She made up for it in the fifth with an attack that got the best of Sharapova at times but wasn’t the solution to the problem.
The fifth game ended with the Russian still in control of her game leading to another step forward and a talk between Mladenovic and her mother/coach. The two understood that Sharapova was playing a very hard on the serve and that she should serve towards the target and go for the first chance she had on the ball during rallies. It helped produce another win for the Frenchwoman but knew that the reality of playing Sharapova straight up for a break was harder than ever at this stage.
The seventh wasn’t easy for Sharapova to notch for herself but a heavy effort in beating Mladenovic increased the level of pressure for her opponent to stave off an end of the set while in possession. She tried to change up her serve in hopes of keeping Sharapova guessing. She made it work to avoid an end twice so far but the former number one had a grip on her game. She finished service in the ninth with a strong push to victory that gave her the set in 35 minutes. The difference maker between the two who played evenly was the second serve of Mladenovic who won just 4 of 16 and 5 of 25 on the returns giving Sharapova so much comfort.
It was still the key to the Russian’s march to victory as she broke and consolidated it with a hold of Mladenovic. The 2-0 lead was something the French star knew she had to bring an end to and did it with a solid love service in the third that gave her some confidence but consistency would be needed to make something happen. She struck big for a double break point in the fourth to even with Sharapova gaining confidence more than ever in the match.
A third consecutive win for Mladenovic came on serve that turned the tide of control to the French star who had her first lead. A must win for Sharapova ended the French star’s winning streak delivering winners on court that she knew were necessary to reel the control back to her end. Mladenovic was not out of it as she fought to defend on serve in the seventh. Sharapova breathed down her neck but didn’t give up any cheap points while moving into deuce. She handled the pressure of what was at stake and sealed the victory on serve to set the bar for Sharapova to do the same.
It was a race to the finish line as Mladenovic and Sharapova traded off wins on their service that led them to an ultimate finish of the second set. The tenth came down to whether the French star could hold off the Russian for the break that looked possible for a time. Sharapova answered with such ferocity that she saved the set from ending and forced deuce giving her a chance to regroup.
With the set tied at five all, the mission was for one of the players to win the sixth game and carry a heavy advantage. It was turning into the longest game of the match for the two stars as Mladenovic did everything to hold on to her serve but Sharapova battled to break her and forced the breaks to come. Five had elapsed over the span of nine minutes but a winner was yet to be determined.
Two big winners after the break were the keys to beating the Russian for her to win the game and end 10 minutes and 48 seconds of play in Game 11. This was the first time Sharapova saw the threat of going down a set but as the two haven’t dropped one in the tournament, it was becoming inevitable in the second set that one would falter.
Mladenovic would be tested as Sharapova had the ball in the 12th but the test really stood with the Russians who showed signs of weakness on serve. A critical double fault set Mladenovic for a chance to win the set and did so with a return that pushed the match to the distance for the first time between the two players.
It was turning into a neck and neck race with both on point during their service holds but with Mladenovic leading the way, it gave Sharapova some worry in her mind. Prior to the fourth game coach Sven Groeneveld came out to speak with his athlete and give her some confidence to go along with her strong game play. She was still putting in a lot of effort to beat Mladenovic on deuce digging deep to save the service hold and play forward.
The change came in the sixth after the French star had control in the score and was consistent with pressuring Sharapova to make a critical error and open the door for a break. Though it took time in the game, she managed to counter on a chance left open and take a 4-2 run giving her a huge chance to dictate. After making it 5-2, the nerves of Sharapova were quite clear on court that she had to do something amazing to stay in the competition.
The nerves were battling Sharapova’s offense where she made some errors on the serve but saved herself with an ace or winners against Mladenovic. Though it took a fight on deuce, she got a chance to play another game but it would take a lot for her to break the French star. Her returns allowed her to reach a double break and completed the victory that left her a game down from leveling the set.
While the Russian had a mission on her hands, the French star had her chance to battle and win the break by any means. She forced deuce with Sharapova where after a couple of breaks a net front rally of lobbed shots came down to a long one that Sharapova took a swing at but missed. The missed opportunity brought an end to a 2 hour and 38 minute bout that could have gone either way but had two results come from it.
“It wasn’t an easy match but I just tried to fight in there and it paid off,” Mladenovic said after the match. “I think the most important thing for me to do was to return her serve and she served brilliant short angles close to the line and it really not easy to return. Eventually I put some returns back, put pressure to be in the rally.”
Sharapova would move into the WTA rankings putting her into a tie with American Lauren Davis with 185 points. The inability of winning the tournament spells very little chance of the Russian entering the French Open next month. For Mladenovic, her next step to finals would be on whether she would face Simona Halep or last year’s finalist Laura Siegemund of Germany.
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