Sharapova will next face Germany’s 2016 Australian Open victor Angelique Kerber, who celebrated her 30th birthday by overcoming Croatia’s Donna Vekic 6-4 6-1. It was not a game to remember, strewn with errors at both ends. There is no doubt that all eyes will be on the Kerber-Sharapova match this weekend. Last year, coming back after a six-month layoff to rest his injured left knee, Federer swept all before him for his first Grand Slam title since 2012.
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Sharapova was delighted to have overcome her tricky opponent so convincingly, having also struggled against Sevastova before beating her in Beijing previous year. The second set was much more comfortable as she held serve and took the two chances to break she presented to seal the win.
Maria Sharapova also looked terrific in a win over Tatjana Maria.
“They know that. We’re not partners”.
With the temperatures heading towards an energy-sapping 39 Celsius (102 Fahrenheit) and ice-towels in use, the Russian drawcard worked hard to get off court early against Anastasija Sevastova.
Tennis star Novak Djokovic has reportedly gained locker-room support as disgruntled tennis players demand more slice of the grand slam pie. “She (Kerber) just happens to be the next one that’s in the draw that I have to play”. I think it will be a good match.
Kerber and Sharapova have played seven times before, with the Russian leading 4-3 but having lost the last two of some fine encounters. The most recent match was in the 2015 Stuttgart Open, a match Kerber won in three sets. First serve was kind of up and down.
“I’m looking forward to playing against her”, the German said. I was just hanging in there trying to use every single opportunity.
“She’s had success playing out here in these conditions on these courts”. “I want to. go out there and do some damage”.
In the men’s tournament, Novak Djokovic of Serbia marked his injury comeback with a comfortable straight sets win over Donald Young of the United States.
“The elbow is not at 100 per cent but it’s building”.
Federer, 36, remains on course to seal his 20th grand slam title and will face Frenchman Richard Gasquet in the third round. The Swiss leads the pair’s head-to-head record 16-2 and anticipates a quality match.
“Obviously I wanted to start with the right intensity, which I have”, he said. “We’ve had some good matches over the years”. We don’t have the players in the same room at all times.
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It was not only Djokovic and Monfils struggling in the heat, Juan Martin del Potro also had to play in the hottest part of the day, the Argentine beating Karen Kachanov in four sets.
