Tennis: Sharapova eyes progress on clay

World number two Maria Sharapova admitted that she still needs to improve on clay if she is to achieve a career Grand Slam at this year’s French Open, according to ESPN. The three-time major winner is looking forward to the red clay as she makes her first appearance at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart this week. “My goal for this year’s clay-court season is to improve even more physically,” said Sharapova. “I can withstand longer matches and I recover better, I’m still learning about the clay-court game which is a little bit like a cat and mouse game, as the ball comes back more often and differently.”

Published in The Express Tribune, April 26^th, 2012.