TENNIS ROLAND GARROS – Maria Sharapova took care of Garbine Muguruza 1-6 7-5 6-1 and Eugenie Bouchard dismissed Carla Suarez-Navarro 7-6(4) 2-6 7-5. This is the Russian’s fourth consecutive French Open semifinals and the Canadian’s second consecutive major semifinals. Cordell Hackshaw

Interviews, Results, OOP, Draws from the Roland Garros

With both the women’s top half quarterfinals matches being played simultaneously, there was a moment when both Maria Sharapova (7) and Eugenie Bouchard (18) looked as though they would be headed home from the tournament around the same time. Sharapova had dropped the opening set in spectacular fashion 1-6 to Garbine Muguruza and Bouchard saw Carla Suarez-Navarro (14) serving for first set at 5-2. The Spaniards and doubles partners Navarro and Muguruza had the matches within their grasp; their first semifinal in a major was so very close. However, both Sharapova and Bouchard felt they were not ready to go home and had yet to play their best tennis of the day. Battling back with the spirit of champions, they sent their opponents packing. Sharapova took care of Muguruza 1-6 7-5 6-1 and Bouchard dismissed Suarez-Navarro 7-6(4) 2-6 7-5. This is Sharapova’s fourth consecutive French Open semifinals and Bouchard’s second consecutive major semifinals. Now she and Sharapova will fight it out for a chance to be the 2014 French Open champion.

When the women’s draw came out, many thought that Serena Williams (1) would play Sharapova for the 18^th time and get a 16^th consecutive win. Muguruza blew that projection to pieces when she dismantled Williams in the 2^nd round. Sharapova must have counted her lucky stars by this result. However, with the way Muguruza came out on court firing on all cylinders, it was as though Williams was still present at least in spirit. The Spaniard quickly had a double break in hand 4-0 before Sharapova was able to hold comfortably for a 1-4 scoreline. Muguruza was tapping into the “Serena playbook” of dealing with Sharapova; attacking the serves, going after the forehand and being aggressive on all points. Sharapova had no answers for this young charge and was soon broken for a third time to hand the set 1-6 to Muguruza in 27 minutes. Sharapova said after the match “[S]he was playing very aggressive and hitting shots very deep. I just didn’t have much to say to that in the first set.” The match was far from over as as Sharapova is one of the most competitive players on tour. Muguruza would soon find out that winning the first set against Sharapova is not nearly as hard as winning the second.

If Muguruza wanted to win this match she had to do so in straight sets and she could not let up in her aggression or falter during points. In the 2^nd set, the Spaniard failed to both either. Sharapova spoke about her mindset after the disastrous 1^st set, “[L]ittle by little I started playing a bit better, started getting in the court a little bit more, playing a little bit more aggressive, serving better than I did in the first set, returning as well, giving myself more looks at break points.” She turned things around by quickly breaking Muguruza in the 3^rd game and held for a 3-1 lead. Muguruza would break back and force Sharapova to serve to stay in the match down 4-5 but Sharapova easily held to remain on serve at 5-5. After digging herself out of 0-30 holes in her two previous service games, Muguruza was up 30-0 to edge ahead again at 6-5. Sharapova seized upon this moment and reeled off four quick successive points to secure the crucial break as Muguruza was unable to defend the pace coming at her. “30-Love on serve when she’s serving quite well, I’m sure she feels like she has a good chance of getting that game in the bag, and all of a sudden I’m serving for the set.” Sharapova served for the 2^nd set at 6-5 and though it would take her three set points to close it out, she took it 7-5.

Muguruza would say after the match that, “[D]uring the first set mentally I was so strong. I thought, I’m going to win. Then I was a bit nervous…And then, little by little, when you start losing, it’s a question of nerves. Then she started playing a lot better.” Play better she, Sharapova, did. In the 3^rd set, Sharapova again broke early for a 3-1 lead. She then fought off several break points to remain ahead 4-1 and it was all over for Muguruza who became erratic. She would commit 26 errors in the 3^rd set alone, which equalled her combined total in the two previous sets. Sharapova on the other hand had only 5 errors in the set. Being this sloppy against the likes of Sharapova, Muguruza had no chance of taking this match in the 3^rd. Sharapova then broke Muguruza was a third time in the set to take the match 1-6 7-5 6-1.

Sharapova’s opponent in the semifinal, Bouchard, did not have such a straight forward comeback. Her good plays came in ebbs and flows. She started off poorly against Suarez-Navarro down 2-5 with the Spaniard serving for the match. However, Bouchard soon had break points on the Spaniard’s first attempt to take set and took one of them to be down 3-5. She held serve giving Suarez-Navarro a second chance to close out the set at 5-4 but the Spaniard could not get the job done again. Bouchard needed no encouragement to seize upon this wavering spirit of her opponent and took the lead 6-5. The Spaniard found her serve again and forced the matter to a tiebreaker but again became erratic at crucial stages. Bouchard took the breaker 7-6(4) and seemingly with it the match’s momentum.

Suarez-Navarro came back from an early break in the 2^nd set to take 6 of the next 7 games. She took the set 6-2 and looked to be supreme control of the match. She was again broken early in the 3^rd set but reeled of the next 4 games to be ahead 4-1. It seemed as though Bouchard’s best tennis came out when she was close to losing it for at this point, she fought her way back into the match. “At the end of the day, whether I win or lose, I want to at least leave it all there and try and at least battle,” Bouchard explained. She fought her way into the match. Bouchard began again attacking the weak serves of Suarez-Navarro and controlling from the baseline. She went after the backhand of the Spaniard which is normally very solid but today was doing her very little favours. Soon it was 5-5 and Bouchard again broke Suarez-Navarro to serve for the match. By this time, there was not much fight left in the Spaniard and Bouchard mainly had to remain focus and patient to take the match. On Bouchard’s second match point, Suarez-Navarro’s backhand again let her down and the Canadian took the match 7-6(4) 2-6 7-5.

Suarez-Navarro spoke after the match, “Well, for me it was a very difficult match. I played good, but she’s a really good player. I was up in the first set; I lost. I was up in the final set; I lost. It is difficult to speak now. I’m not happy with the result. But she was fighting all the ball until the end. She deserve to win.” This will be the third meeting for Sharapova and Bouchard who has yet to win a set off the Russian. Bouchard had this to say about the match up, “[W]e’re in the semis of a Grand Slam, so I’m going to respect her but not put her too high on a pedestal and really just battle. That’s what it’s going to be. I will leave everything on court and just focus on myself and try my best to win.”