SHARAPOVA AND HALEP

Written by: Staff on 7th June 2014

French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros

SHARAPOVA AND HALEP

epa04244126 Maria Sharapova of Russia poses with the trophy after winning her final match against Simona Halep of Romania in the women's final of the French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, 07 June 2014. EPA/YOAN VALAT |

Sharapova in Three

By Cheryl Jones

It was Maria Sharapova holding the trophy at the finish of the women’s singles at Roland Garros. It was the second longest women’s final in the history of the tournament. Sharapova and her opponent Simona Halep traded the lead throughout the long sets. It was an extraordinarily exciting final after last year’s romp by Serena Williams.

The match was filled with anxious moments that tilted first toward one and then the other. It was a thinking woman’s game. The crowd was on the edge of their seats during the entire match; there was no lull in the competition. It was a game of finesse; the way tennis is supposed to be played.

Three hours and two minutes must have gone by in a flash for the two appropriately evenly matched women.( Sharapova was ranked 8th before Roland Garros began and Halep was even further up the rankings at four.) She will move up to number 3, that’s a certainty.) She said throughout the tournament that never in her life could she have imagined such a meteoric rise in her rankings. (Her game, in my opinion is a match for anyone on the tour.)

The competition was a testament to the fitness of both. Even though most matches on the women’s side are not usually so lengthy, there was no huffing and puffing during changeovers; no calls for the trainers; no long breaks in the action. The last ball was struck by Halep. It flew just outside the alley on the add court side, and then, it was finished. She quietly retreated to her chair and with a towel covering her head, she cried. Sharapova dropped to her knees where she was standing and wept. They were tears of joy.

Sharapova soon skillfully climbed over the barrier and into the stands, falling quickly into arms of her vast team of supporters, including her boyfriend, Grigor Dimitrov, (a Bulgarian tennis professional), along with her coach, Sven Groeneveld who is Dutch. She has a cadre of capable men on her team who could make up a small branch of the United Nations. Beside Groeneveld, there was long time hitting partner, Dieter Kindlmann a German; Physio, Jerome Bianchi is French; and her trainer, Utaka Nakamura from Japan.

When asked how she felt after the match, because it had been a while since her first Grand Slam win in London, she said, “So to sit here 10 years later and have five under my belt and to keep going, it’s quite emotional. I mean, I’m still a bit speechless about the victory today.” It wouldn’t be a surprise to see another title fall her way in mere weeks. Wimbledon, where it all began for her is next up on her dance card.

The 22 year-old Halep is Romanian and she had an entourage of supportive young men urging her on during the contest. They were clad in red tee shirts and leaped in unison after each small triumph for the object of their adoration. Halep won the Junior Filles (Girls) title at Roland Garros in 2008, and was looking to join the likes of Jennifer Capriati and Justine Henin with a win this afternoon. That will have to wait. Her game is quality and she will likely repeat her performance here and come out as a winner, using the experience she gained during the fortnight in Paris.

During this stint at Roland Garros, she was the first woman since Martina Hingis in 1997 at the Australian Open who did not drop a set previous to the final at a Grand Slam. Today, she dropped two and that was enough to give Sharapova the championship.

There is no doubt that Halep was disappointed with her loss, but afterward she spoke of her happiness with the audience that was constantly at the ready to heap audible praise on the young woman who played with such poise and skill. She said, “It was [an] amazing atmosphere out there. My feeling was just to see that the people, all the people are with me, and they say my name during the games and during the points. So it was incredible, incredible crowd here, and I want to thank everybody, also the Romanians, because they came special for me to support me today. I heard that in my country they were watching my match in the city, so it was amazing. I really want to say thank you to them.”

And we want to thank both her and Sharapova. It was a spectacular match to watch and the end was somewhat like a happily ever after story for both of them. There couldn’t be two winners; that was a given. It was obvious from the first rally that they would each give their all and they did. Merci, Maria and Simona! The tennis world looks forward to seeing more – more great tennis and more exceptional competition, no matter who either of their opponents happens to be.

The French Tennis Federation received a cadeaux (present) from Julien Benniteau and Edouardo Roger-Vasselin who became the first French doubles team in thirty years to take home the men’s doubles title. They defeated Spaniards Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez, 6-3, 7-6 in a match that could have been anti-climactic following Halep and Sharapova’s feature presentation. (Yannick Noah and Henri Leconte were the last French men’s doubles winners. They had to go five sets to make the trophy theirs.)

Tomorrow, it will be the men. After the women’s doubles match has been completed, Rafael Nadal will take the stage looking for his historic ninth win. Novak Djokovic is searching for a win to complete his own private Grand Slam. They will have to go a long way to outdo the women’s play, but the two men are up to most anything. Just take a look at each of their history with the game.

Topics: Cheryl Jones, French Open, GRIGOR DIMITROV, Maria Sharapova, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roland Garros, Serena Williams, Simona Halep, Tennis, Tennis News

Follow 10SBALLS.COM on:

Facebook:

Twitter:

10sBalls_com says:

June 7, 2014 at 8:43 pm

SHARAPOVA AND HALEP – http://t.co/Zrb7t5gQ1z @MariaSharapova @halep_official #tennis #RG14 #FrenchOpen #Paris