Sharapova shines, subdues No. 2 seed Halep

Maria Sharapova ended her 15-month doping suspension with an emotional three-set win against No. 2 seed Simone Halep in a first-round match at the U.S. Open Monday night in New York.
Maria Sharapova ended her 15-month doping suspension with an emotional three-set win against No. 2 seed Simone Halep in a first-round match at the U.S. Open Monday night in New York.

NEW YORK -- When Maria Sharapova's first Grand Slam match after a 15-month doping suspension ended with a victory at the U.S. Open, she dropped to her knees and covered her face, tears welling in her eyes.

The victory moved Sharapova to the second round, but it meant much more to her. It meant she was back.

Sharapova, showing as much emotion as she ever did during five Grand Slam victories, recovered after faltering midway through the match and emerged to beat No. 2-seeded Simona Halep 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 at the U.S. Open over more than 2½ hours Monday night.

"Behind all these Swarovski crystals and little black dresses, this girl has a lot of grit, and she's not going anywhere," Sharapova told the crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Sharapova was her old self, utilizing shot-punctuating shrieks, an aggressive baseline style, terrific returning, and sometimes shaky serving.

"You sometimes wonder why you put in all the work," she said, "and this is exactly why."

Sharapova was up a set and led 4-1 in the second when she showed fatigue and rust, dropping five games in a row.

But in the third, Sharapova regained control by going ahead 3-0, using her power to keep two-time French Open runner-up Halep under pressure.

Sharapova had not played at a Grand Slam tournament since January 2016, when she tested positive for the newly banned heart drug meldonium during the Australian Open.

Sharapova, a 30-year-old Russian, was allowed back on the tour this April, but she was denied a wild-card invitation for the French Open the next month. The U.S. Tennis Association did grant a wild card to Sharapova, who was once ranked No. 1 but is currently 146th.

Sharapova totaled 60 winners, 45 more than Halep, who was among eight women who entered the U.S. Open with a chance to top the WTA rankings by tournament's end.

The draw at Flushing Meadows randomly paired the two players, providing a buzz-generating matchup that managed to live up to the hype on Day 1 at the year's last Grand Slam tournament.

"I gave everything I had," Halep said. "She was better."

And at an event that began without Serena Williams, who is expecting a baby, and is already missing two of its top seven seeded women -- No. 7 Johanna Konta, a Wimbledon semifinalist just last month, was upset by 78th-ranked Aleksandra Krunic of Serbia 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 -- Sharapova must be considered a serious title contender. She did, after all, win the U.S. Open in 2006.

Sharapova vs. Halep was more befitting a final than a first-rounder. These two women have faced off in the past with a Grand Slam title at stake: Sharapova beat Halep in the 2014 French Open final, part of what is now her 7-0 head-to-head record in the matchup.

Sharapova improved to 11-0 in first-round matches in New York.

Sports on 08/29/2017

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