Western & Southern Open, Cincinnati

Women’s Semifinal: [CR6] Maria Sharapova (RUS) vs. [CR11] Ana Ivanovic (SRB)

Hard to tell, as it seems that everything was at play in this semifinal match between Ivanovic and Sharapova. There was no doubt that something was amiss; Ivanovic took the first set 6-2 and was leading 4-0 when everything fell apart.  She would eventually lose that set 5-7.  Things looked unfavorable at that point but appeared grim when she took an injury timeout.

The player that never gives up no matter the score was on the other side and despite not playing at her best, she was making life difficult for Ivanovic with her short angled shots and her forceful groundstrokes. In fact it was almost over when Sharapova served for it in the third set, but almost is not good enough.  It was not over until the last ball was struck and that was the shot that won Ivanovic the match, 6-2, 5-7, 7-5.

There was no doubt that nerves were a big component of this match; however, it would be interesting to know what role nerves played in causing Ivanovic’s nausea?