Nadal and Sharapova triumph as French Open welcomes future star
Rafael Nadal and Maria Sharapova battled into the French Open last 32
on Wednesday as Roland Garros saw the future of women’s tennis in the
shape of high-volume 16-year-old Michelle Larcher de Brito.
Four-time champion Nadal enjoyed a comfortable 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 win over
Teimuraz Gabashvili of Russia to register a record 30th straight win
here to better the mark set by Chris Evert.
In the first round Nadal surpassed Bjorn Borg for the longest
unbeaten run for a man and a tournament win here on June 7 would make
him the first to win five titles in a row in Paris.
“I came here to get a result without thinking about these records,”
said Nadal who will face former world number one Lleyton Hewitt for a
place in the last 16.
“The important thing is to play my best tennis and be there on the
final Sunday.”
Triple Grand Slam title winner Sharapova, playing only her second
tournament following a 10-month lay-off to recover from shoulder
surgery, prevailed in a bruising 6-2, 1-6, 8-6 win over Russian
compatriot Nadia Petrova.
The former world number one, whose world ranking has slumped to 102
as a consequence of her lengthy absence, will now face Kazakh qualifier
Yaroslava Shvedova for a place in the last 16.
“These types of matches are very important for me although I spent
more time on the court than I wanted to,” said Sharapova after the 2hr
12min encounter which saw her recover from a break down in the final
set. “But I’m learning new things. It was a great match where I had to
fight really hard and that’s what I did. I’m glad I picked myself up and
I could win.”
Portuguese teenager de Brito only turned 16 in January and, like
Sharapova, is a graduate of the famed Nick Bolletieri academy in Florida
which she joined when she was only nine.
Making her Grand Slam debut, de Brito, ranked 132, came through
qualifying and on Wednesday made sure of a place in the last 32 with a
6-4, 6-3 win over China’s 15th seed Zheng Jie, who reached the Wimbledon
semi-finals last year.
De Brito, with her flowing all-court game and deafening decibel
level, now goes on to face France’s Aravane Rezai.
“I went to Florida when I was nine with my family. But I feel
Portuguese and that will always be the case,” said the teenager.
PARIS,
Thursday, AFP
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