Maria Sharapova showed she’s back in form at the US Open with a first-round upset of No. 2-seeded Simona Halep at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Monday night. Sharapova hung on, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, to advance to the second round in her first Grand Slam tournament since returning from a doping suspension earlier this year.
US Open results 2017: Maria Sharapova upsets 2nd-seeded Simona Halep in 1st round
Despite being an unseeded wild card, Sharapova proved she’s a contender in her first major tournament since a doping suspension.
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Sharapova looked comfortable and confident from the first serve despite the lack of competitive reps over the past 18 months. She took the lead early in the first set and fought off Halep with a dominant forehand to take it, 6-4.
The second set appeared to be going the same way for Sharapova as she got out to a 4-1 advantage. Halep then suddenly came to life with her back against the wall by winning five straight games to take the second set and remind everyone why she’s one of the highest-ranked players in the world.
Following a lengthy break between sets, Sharapova returned to form by winning three straight games before Halep held serve to make it 3-1. They traded games from there to make it 5-3 before Sharapova put the match away.
Sharapova was suspended by the International Tennis Federation in June 2016 after testing positive for meldonium. The ban was initially supposed to last two years but got reduced to 15 months in Oct. 2016. She made her return to the court on April 26, 2017, at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, where she eventually lost in the semifinals to Kristina Mladenovic.
The five-time major tourney champion has appeared at other tournaments since then but did not receive an invitation to the 2017 French Open. Her wild card entry at the US Open, which was granted just weeks ago, marks her return to major tournaments since the positive doping test.
Halep rose to become the No. 2 player in the world rankings behind Karolina Pliskova entering the US Open, but she has never beaten Sharapova or won a Grand Slam tournament.
This loss drops her to 0-7 in matches against Sharapova, including a loss in the 2014 French Open final between the two stars. Halep also reached the final of the 2017 French Open, but lost to Jeļena Ostapenko, who became the first unseeded player to win the tournament since 1933.
Sharapova will face unseeded Timea Babos in the second round. Babos reached the third round of the US Open last year before losing to Halep, who got a brutal first-round draw this year against an opponent she’s never defeated.
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