Prediction: Sharapova Poised To Win Wimbledon 2011 Crown

Russia’s Maria Sharapova faces Czech Republic’s Petra Kvitova in her bid for a second Wimbledon title, to add to the first one she won, in 2004.

This promises to be a hard-fought match between two women in prime form, and a win by either woman could help define the new order of women’s tennis, with the younger players ready and willing to take the baton from the old guard of the Williams sisters and Kim Clijsters.

These players have met just once before, at the Regions Morgan Keegan Championships and the Cellular south Cup, in February 2010. Sharapova won that match in straight sets 6-4, 6-3.

Kvitova has been in great form this year, recording 38 wins as against only 6 losses. Likewise, Sharapova has also been in great touch, winning 32, while losing 7.

In April, Kvitova won against Belgium’s Yanina Wickmayer and Kirsten Flipkens, in the Fed Cup semi-finals, to help take her country to the finals to be played against Russia.
Thereafter, she lifted the Madrid Open crown, by beating Victoria Azarenka, in the final. In the French Open, her next tournament, Kvitova acquitted herself well, reaching the round of 16, wherein she lost to Na Li, the eventual champion. In the run up to Wimbledon, Kvitova reached the finals of the AEGON International, and lost in a hard-fought final to Marion Bartoli.

En route to the Wimbledon final, Kvitova did not drop a single set in the first four rounds. In the quarter-finals, she prevailed over Tsvetana Pironkova 6-3, 6-7, 6-2, before going on to beat fifth-ranked Victoria Azarenka 1-6, 6-3, 2-6, in the semi-finals.

Sharapova reached the final of the Sony Ericsson Open in April, a match she lost in straight sets to Victoria Azarenka. therafter, a loss to Dimika Cibulkova, in the third round at the Madrid Open was followed by a successful title bid at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, in May, beating Samantha Stosur, in the final.

Sharapova got to the semi-finals of the French Open, only to be beaten by Na Li, who went on to win the crown. Her next stop has been at Wimbledon; with her strong grass court game, Sharapova did not bother about any preparatory tournament ahead of the event.

In her run up to the final, the Russian world number 6 has not dropped a single set, while beating Anna Chakvetadze, Laura Robson, Klara Zakopalova and Shuai Peng in the first four rounds and Dominika Cibulkova and Sabine Lisicki, in the next two matches.

In the quarter-finals against Cibulkova, Sharapova was brutal, winning 6-1, 6-1. Her semi-finals win against big-serving Lisicki was no less comprehensive, with final score 6-4, 6-3.

PLAYER COMPARISON CHARTS

Player Track Record Comparison

Parameter	Petra Kvitova	Maria Sharapova
ATP Ranking	8	6
Grand Slams Won	0	3
Head to Head	Won 0	Won 1
Country	Czech Republic	Russia

 

Biographic Comparison

Parameter	Petra Kvitova	Maria Sharapova
Date of Birth	Mar 8, 1990	Apr 19, 1987
Height	183 cm	188
Weight	70 kg	59
Plays	Left	Right

 

Kvitova is the first left-hander to enter in the Wimbledon final, since Martina Navratilova, in 1994. She is facing a three-time Grand Slam winner in Sharapova, whose last Grand Slam win came at the Australian Open, in 2008.

While Kvitova has shown great mental toughness, in getting to the Wimbledon final, that alone may not be enough against a player who revels on this surface and who has not win the title more often because of the dominance of the Williams sisters during the last decade. A win this year could be the first of many more to come, for the Russian star.

Prediction: Sharapova to win in straight sets.

Tags: Australia, Madrid, Prediction, Russia, Sharapova

Category: Australian Open, French Open, Tennis, Wimbledon