Sharapova On Halep, Brisbane & More

Posted: Jan 02, 2016

BRISBANE, Australia – Just ahead of her title defense at the Brisbane International, Maria Sharapova met the press at the Premier-level tournament on Friday and discussed everything from her off-season, a tricky first round draw and a tantalizing potential semifinal showdown against Simona Halep.

But first things first, her first round draw – and it’s a doozy. Sharapova drew fellow Russian Ekaterina Makarova, who isn’t just a former Top 10 player, but a two-time Grand Slam semifinalist.

“The last time we played was in the semifinals of a Grand Slam, last year in Australia, and I don’t think we’ve played since,” Sharapova said. “She was injured at the end of last year and I haven’t seen her play much because of that, but that’s a pretty high quality first match against a tough opponent.”

Should the No.3-seeded Sharapova escape Makarova and eventually emerge out of her quarter of the draw, which includes No.7 seed Belinda Bencic, she could play No.1 seed Halep in the semifinals.

Though she’s never lost to Halep, the World No.4 isn’t taking anything for granted.

“It’s a long road ahead. A semifinal isn’t something I’m focused on before the tournament even begins – we still have many matches to play, and many matches to win. If we get there, I’ll think about it.

“But Simona and I have played many times, and even though I have a good record against her, she’s No.2 in the world for a reason, and you always want to play the best going into the Australian Open.

“That’s one of the big reasons I’m here in Brisbane this week.”

Another reason Sharapova’s in Brisbane? She’s done very, very well here before.

“I’ve had three days of practice here and I’m feeling pretty solid,” Sharapova, who edged Ana Ivanovic for last year’s title, said. “It’s been nice to get back on that court and get a good feel for it.”

And though she missed almost four months of action in the second half of 2015 due to leg and arm injuries, she came back at the very end and finished very strong – she reached the semifinals of the WTA Finals in her first tournament back and then won both of her matches in the Fed Cup final.

“Those injuries took a little bit longer to heal than I’d wanted to, but once they did I felt pretty good about where I was physically. I was able to perform and compete well at the end of the year, and withstand some really physical matches. That gives me a lot of confidence going into this year.

“My off-season was a bit shorter than I’m used to. I’ve had to put a few things together a bit quicker than usual. I didn’t take much time off – I’m kind of saving that a little bit for post-Australia, so I’ll have to work through my schedule a little bit and make some changes with the Olympics coming up.

“But it was nice to be with family and friends at Christmas, one of my favorite times of year.”