At the BNP Paribas Open, Sharapova lost in the third round to Zheng Jie, aggravating a bruised bone on her right elbow in the process, which resulted in her eventual withdrawal from the Sony Ericsson Open,[44] and the Family Circle Cup.[45]
Returning at the 2010 Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open, Sharapova lost in the first round to Lucie Šafářová. She continued her French Open preparation at the Internationaux de Strasbourg with her first title on red clay and 22nd overall title.[46] Her brief clay season culminated with a third round loss to four-time champion Justine Henin at the French Open. It was her seventh loss to the Belgian in ten career meetings.
Sharapova began her preparations for Wimbledon by making the final of the AEGON Classic for the fourth time since 2007, losing there to Li Na. As the 16th seed at Wimbledon, she made it to the fourth round before losing to world No. 1 and eventual champion Serena Williams, despite having three set points in the opening set.[47] The match was seen as another encouraging performance for Sharapova, with some stating their belief that she was approaching the form that would see her contending for Grand Slams once more,[48] and Sharapova herself stating she feels that she is "in a much better spot than I was last year."[49]
Sharapova started her US Open Series campaign in Stanford. She won her opening two matches against World No. 23 Jie Zheng and World No. 43 Olga Govortsova in straight sets. In the quarterfinals she defeated World No. 6 Elena Dementieva in three sets and 2 hours and 47 minutes. She then beat World No. 11 Agnieszka Radwańska to advance to the final where she played World No. 18 Victoria Azarenka and was defeated in straight sets. Her next tournament was the Western and Southern Financial Group Women's Open, starting August 9. This was her debut appearance at this venue. She defeated her 1st round opponent Svetlana Kuznetsova in 2 hours and 12 minutes 6–4 1–6 6–2. In the second round, Sharapova overcame Andrea Petkovic in straight sets. Sharapova then defeated Agnieszka Radwańska for the second time this year where she advanced to the quarterfinals. She then reached the semifinals after she won her match against Marion Bartoli 6–1 6–4. Sharapova advanced into her fifth final of the year after beating compatriot Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in over 2 hours. She then lost to Kim Clijsters in three sets in the final after losing 3 championship points in the second set. Sharapova pulled out of the 2010 Rogers Cup in Montreal due to a heel injury suffered during the match with Clijsters.
At the 2010 U.S. Open, Maria defeated Australian Jarmila Groth 4–6, 6–3, 6–1 in the first round. She faced Iveta Benesova in the second round and won 6–1, 6–2. She defeated American wildcard Beatrice Capra 6–0, 6–0 in the third round. This was Maria's second career double bagel. Her first such win was against Bethanie Mattek-Sands a few years ago. Sharapova faced top seed Caroline Wozniacki in the round of 16, and went on to lose 6–3, 6–4. Maria hit more winners than the number one seed, but committed more unforced errors which resulted in her first ever loss to the Dane. The loss also marked the first season where Sharapova did not go past the round of 16 in any of the four Grand Slams since her Grand Slam debut in 2003.
Maria's next scheduled tournament is the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Toyko, where she has to defend her title.
Maria Sharapova Gallery
Maria Sharapova Gallery
Maria Sharapova Gallery
Maria Sharapova Gallery
Maria Sharapova Gallery
