On Sunday, during her maiden visit to India, World No. 2 displayed that she had a funny bone and is experimental too. “I began my day with a dosa in breakfast; it came on the chef's advice!” Sharapova beamed, says a report in Deccan Chronicle, adding that at 25, she presents a perfect picture.
“Four time Grand Slam champion, hugely talented, stunning looks, earnings in the range of $25 million a year the highest for a women athlete worldwide a long queue of endorsements, modelling assignments and fans across the globe. Year 2012 has been special for her. After a shoulder surgery in 2008, the former world number 1 clawed her way back to the top again, with a remarkable French Open win this season and was followed by silver at the London Olympics,” says the report.
“The French Open win this year was extra special. I was injured for a year. And to come back with a different perspective about how to get into winning positions and to learn how hard it is to convert them into wins... it was an incredible experience that I will never forget,” she said, adding, “After a rewarding season, I get to visit a country that is new for me and I haven't explored before. People appreciate what you do and that means a lot to me.”
According to a report in Mid-Day, Maria Sharapova — the name has oomph and glamour attached to it and when the four-time Grand Slam champion showed up in New Delhi yesterday there was that unmistaken mystique in the tennis majesty.
“The six-foot-two World No 2 Russian expectedly turned heads when she walked in with an air of elegance. It’s her first visit to India where, she herself admitted, she has countless fans. She didn’t forget to talk of the dosa (pancake made from the batter of rice and black lentils) she had and how nice it tasted,” says the report.
“I have tremendous amount of fans in this country and it feels great to get such a warm welcome. It has been a remarkable year for me and now I have a nice little break which has allowed me to come here,” said Sharapova, who looked stunning wearing a blazer and a black skirt.
The 25-year-old, here to announce her partnership with a UK-based real estate company “Well, it is just the hair and make-up you know. I don't wake up looking like this,” quipped Sharapova when a scribe called her pretty.
Here only for a day, Sharapova said: “I arrived last night and asked the chef what should I try of the Indian food. I had a dosa which tasted really nice. I wanted to have this great Indian experience. There is so much energy in the city. I really like the culture and people. You all have been really welcoming.”
Asked she is looking at films and modelling as career options after tennis, the highest-paid women athlete said: “I really have no time for anything other than tennis now.” Sharapova promised to return to India soon and visit the Taj Mahal.
Meanwhile The Times Of India writes that Delhi swooned and sighed in Maria Sharapova’s presence on Sunday, the tennis beauty chose the occasion to indulge in some nostalgia, reminding everyone that her spectacular on-court success this year has come on the back of some extremely trying times.
“The world was at Maria Sharapova’s feet at the start of 2008 before it slowly started to come crashing down. Sharapova won her third Grand Slam title at the Australian Open and rose to World No. 1 but it was too good to last. The rotator cuff injury in her shoulder flared up and a subsequent surgery sidelined her for nearly a year. Fast forward to November 2012, and Sharapova has completed a career Grand Slam, winning the French Open crown, a silver medal at the London Olympics and ending the year as World No. 2 behind Victoria Azarenka,” says the report.
“Winning the French Open this year was extra special,” Sharapova said here on Sunday. “I was out injured for nearly a year. Coming back from such a situation gives a different perspective about how to get into winning positions and how hard it is to convert them.”
“I started at such a young age and everything was going for me. When something is taken away from you, something that you love very much, sometimes it is becomes difficult to understand why it happened.
“I was only 21 when I had a shoulder surgery, which was very unusual for a tennis player. I heard very few players have come back from such a serious injury, so this has been a very emotional year for me,” Sharapova, who announced her association with infrastructure company Homestead, said.
