Maria clears the cobwebs

Maria Sharapova cleans the cobwebs off in Los Angeles in the WTA Championships after
battling injuries in the latter stages of her 2005 campaign, hs played just two tournaments since the US Open, reaching the semi-finals Beijing and heading out of the quarters in Moscow in mid-October.

Maria cruises in 4th round at U.S Open

Maria easily defeates Sania Mirza in the 4th round at the U.S Open, winning in less than an hour in straight sets 6-2, 6-1.

Maria will face Nadia Petrova in the quarter finals.

Maria ended the historic run of Mirza, the first Indian woman to reach the fourth round of a grand slam tournament, traded crunching groundstrokes with the Russian world number one but was gradually overpowered.

Sharapova broke Mirza to lead 4-2 in the first set and then fended off three break points in the next game to build a commanding lead over the world number 42.

Maria unveils a new designer outfit

Maria Sharapova went on Monday to unveil a tennis dress that she designed. It was a special event sponsored by Nike, where Sharapova spoke to underprivileged teenaged girls about her experiences as a tennis player.

The next day, Sharapova was at Fortunoff, the store on Fifth Avenue, launching her new watch, TAG Heuer Formula 1 Diamonds, which she also helped to design.

Maria has a new scent

Tennis hottie Maria Sharapova has already won last years Wimbledon, a spot on People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People list. Now she is trying her hand at beauty products — she has teamed with Parlux to serve up the Maria Sharapova Fragrance, a floral scent. Smell like the stunner in time for the U.S. Open; it's available Sept. 1. $59 for a 3.4-ounce bottle at Macy's.

Sharapova named 'Peoples 50 Hottest Athletes'

Tennis star Maria Sharapova has been named one of People Magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People" in a special issue that hits newsstands on Friday. Sharapova joins English soccer star David Beckham as the only athletes named to this year's list.
The magazine, which features Julia Roberts on its cover, includes Sharapova along with Hollywood stars like Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Jamie Foxx and Hilary Swank.

Maria's quest for No.1 still elusive after Wimbledon

Maria's quest to defend her title and No. 1 ranking still eludes her at Wimbledon over the weekend.
After cruising to the semi-finals, Sharapova is defeated by Serena Williams (7-6),(6-1) at Wimbledon. Her quest for No.1 is still ongoing.

The No.1 ranked Lindsey Davenport was also defeated by Serena Williams days later at the Wimbledon final (4-6, 7-6, 9-7).

Maria advances to the fourth round at Wimbledon

Sharapova wins again at Wimbledon to reach fourth round.
Sharapova advanced to the 4th. round at Wimbledon on Saturday, beating Katarina Srebotnik of Slovenia 6-2, 6-4

The second-seeded Sharapova, who is 2-0 against Srebotnik, will face either Nathalie Dechy of France or Alyona Bondarenko of Ukraine in the next round.

Sharapova gets in gear for Wimbledon

Sharapova, coming off a recent win last weekend in England is geared to make another title run, she arrives this year though as a marked woman.

That doesn't deter the 18 year old tennis star., whose go-for-broke shot-making is perfectly suited for the slick lawns of Wimbledon.

It will be interesting.

Maria warms up for Wimbledon

Maria struggled on a cold day to defeat Jelena Jankovic 6-2, 4-6, 6-1 Sunday to win the DFS Classic and win this Wimbledon warmup for the second year in a row.

Sharapova Defeated in Paris

Henin-Hardenne defeated No.2 Maria Sharapova at Rolan Garros. Maria was given a French Open pounding by former champion Justine Henin Hardenne on Tuesday, ending Maria's hopes of taking over the number one spot. Score: 6-4, 6-2

Maria Eyeing #1 Spot

It was a wet and windy day tuesday as she overpowered her opponent Anabel Medina Garrigues 6-4, 6-2 Tuesday in Rome at the Italian Open. If Sharapova wins this (1.3 million) clay-court as a prelude to the French Open, she will overtake Davenport as the No.1

Top tennis players join forces with Habitat for Humanity/Whirlpool

Top players including Maria have teamed up with 'Habitat For Humanity' to create artwork. The finished Whirlpool Player's Painting, will be auctioned off with procedes benefitting Habitat for Humanity.

This unique work of art has been themed ‘Room with a View’, to link Habitat for Humanity’s core objective of building houses for low income people in need of simple decent low cost shelter across the world.

Bids for these pieces of artwork can found at www.habitateurope.org

Maria Sharapova Closing in on No. 1

Russian sensation Maria Sharapova could add another prestigious title this week to her already-impressive stats...No. 1 in the world. Victory at this week's Qatar Total German Open will not only provide the Wimbledon champion with her 10th career Sony Ericsson WTA Tour singles title (and second Tier I), it will also earn her enough points to overtake Lindsay Davenport for the coveted No.1 ranking.

Top 5 Tennis Camps

New England Tennis Holidays, New Hampshire
Vic Braden Tennis College, Green Valley Spa, Utah
Bio-Hotel Stanglwirt, Tirol Austria
Roy Emerson Tennis Weeks, Palace Hotel, Switzerland
New England Tennis Holidays at Inn at Essex, Vermont

Top Ten Tennis Resorts

Rancho Valencia Resort, California
Wild Dunes Resort, South Carolina
Ponte Vedra Inn & Club, Florida
Kiawah Island Golf Resort, South Carolina
Palmetto Dunes Resort, South Carolina
The Boulders Resort & Golden Door Spa, Arizona
Wintergreen Resort, Virginia
The Broadmoor, Colorado
Tops'l Beach & Racquet Resort, Florida
Mauna Kea Beach Hotel, Hawaii

USTA Serves Up Tennis Block Parties Across The U.S.

The USTA today announced the launch of “Tennis Block Parties” – a monthlong, nationwide series of festivals to increase tennis participation in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. John McEnroe, Monica Seles, Tracy Austin, Luke Jensen and Todd Martin will join celebrities and personalities from sports and entertainment in this new community tennis initiative.

Tennis Block Parties begin Sunday, May 1 in St. Louis, bringing new ways to involve and expose players and potential players to the unparalleled health and social benefits of tennis.

Sharapova Named One of People Magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People"

Tennis star Maria Sharapova has been named one of People Magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People" in a special issue that hits newsstands on Friday. Sharapova joins English soccer star David Beckham as the only athletes named to this year's list.
The magazine, which features Julia Roberts on its cover, includes Sharapova along with Hollywood stars like Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Jamie Foxx and Hilary Swank.

Wimbledon raises the stakes!!!

Wimbledon prize money will approach $20 million this summer, with the men's champion earning $50,000 more than the women's winner. The total figure for the June 20-July 3 tournament is going up 3.9 percent to $19.16 million at current exchange rates, the highest prize money for a tennis tournament, the All England Club said Tuesday .Players are benefiting from the rising value of the British pound against the American dollar.