Шарапова: жду непростой игры с Дементьевой

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Российская теннисистка Мария Шарапова после победы над соотечественницей Еленой Весниной в третьем круге Australian Open в интервью "НТВ-Плюс"прокомментировала свою игру.

"В первых трех геймах я не очень хорошо подавала, - заявила Шарапова. - Но потом собралась и сумела заиграть так, как должна была. Я очень хорошо готова к турниру. Тренировалась больше на корте, чем в спортзале. Сейчас это дает свои результаты".

Также Шарапова рассказала, чего ждет от матча в 1/8 финала с Еленой Дементьевой: "С Дементьевой будет сложно. Она очень хорошо играет на задней линии, кроме того, прекрасно готова физически. Жду очень непростой игры".

Газета.ru

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[*love me for me*]

Маша вышла в 4й круг, обыграв Елену Веснину со счетом 6:3, 6:0.
Следующей соперницей Маши стала Елена Дементьева.
Счет личных встреч: 7:2 в пользу МАши.

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''К игре с Линсдей готовилась, как к финалу''

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Мария Шарапова, после своей победы над Линдсэй Дэвенпорт во втором круге Открытого чемпионата Австралии, заявила, что очень серьезно подошла к этой встрече. "По правде говоря, я настраивалась, как на финал. Как только я узнала, что мне предстоит встреча с ней, сразу начала готовиться к этой игре. Просила тренера бить по мячу как можно сильнее, поскольку лучше, чем у Дэвенпорт, это мало у кого получается, - отметила Шарапова, отдав должное сопернице. - В связи с рождением ребенка Дэвенпорт не выступала около года, при этом на корте она выглядит просто невероятно. Мне даже казалось, что я видела ее сына, который с трибун косо поглядывал на меня", - сообщила Шарапова в интервью Reuters.

ИА "Спортком"

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Маша вышла в 3 круг!

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Маша обыграла Линдсей Дэвенпорт за 1 час 6 минут со счетом: 6:1, 6:3. И соперницей Маши по 3му кругу станет Елена Веснина из России.
Теннисистки ни разу до этого не встречались. Напомню, что Елена занимает 55 место в рейтинге WTA Tour, а Маша - 5ое.
Поздравляю Машу и желаю ей удачи в следющем матче.

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[*love me for me*]

Следующей соперницей Маши стала, как и предполагалось, американка Линдсей Дэвенпорт, вернувшаяся на корт в прошлом году после рождения сына.
Счет личных встреч: 4:1 в пользу Маши:

2004

WIMBLEDON

GRASS (O)

S

M. SHARAPOVA

2-6 7-6(5) 6-1

2005

TOKYO (PAN PACIFIC)

CARPET (I)

F

M. SHARAPOVA

6-1 3-6 7-6(5)

2005

INDIAN WELLS

HARD (O)

S

L. DAVENPORT

6-0 6-0

2005

TOUR CHAMPIONSHIPS

HARD (O)

R1

M. SHARAPOVA

6-3 5-7 6-4

2006

DUBAI

HARD (O)

S

M. SHARAPOVA

3-6 6-1 6-3

Вопрос: как думаете: кто будет сильнее?

1. Маша		3	(100%)
2. Линдсей		0	(0%)
Всего:		3

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наряды Маши на АО в разные годы. Какой вам нраивтся больше?

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2004 год:

2005 год:

2006 год:

2007 год:

2008 Год:

@темы: наряды, AO

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что скажите по поводу наряда?

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@темы: наряды, AO

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интервью 1го круга

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Q. How do you assess your form today as a first‑round match?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: I played a pretty tricky opponent, someone that I haven't played in a while. You know, the last couple matches that I played in Asia were against pretty big‑hitting girls. So she was definitely a trickier opponent. Also a lefty. You don't see too many of those around these days.
So, you know, I was prepared for it, but I was happy that I was able to follow through.

Q. How do you compare your form now with this time last year when you made the final?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: I don't like to compare to last year's form.

Q. How much is this week about getting the business done, getting into the next week?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: It's always a matter of worrying about what you have to do on your side, taking care of business on your side of the net in each and every match that you play, no matter what your opponent is doing. It's important that you do what you have to do and hopefully come out with a win.

Q. Do you have a different mindset week one to week two?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Well, you obviously know that the second week is always tougher than the first. But you got to get the job done in the first week first, worry about the second one when you get there.

Q. How many months have you been completely physically healthy and what's the prognosis now?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Like completely healthy where I've woken up ‑‑ that's pretty much impossible. I'm sure you know that. But shoulder‑wise, for a few months now. I still have to do a lot of treatment on it daily, twice a day before I play and afterwards. But shoulder‑wise I feel real good.

Q. The constant worry you were having last year week to week about the shoulder, that's pretty much gone away?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Yeah. Especially when I'm playing, I'm not worrying about it. I'm not worrying about making it worse, thinking it's going to get worse. Yeah, I'm over that stage ‑ I hope. Knock on wood.

Q. Lindsay is not your typical first‑week opponent. Can you comment on how you see that shaping up?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: It's going to be a completely different opponent than the opponent I played today. You know, Lindsay's a big hitter, has a big serve. You know, she's more of a 1‑2 ball combination type of player. It's going to be very important to serve well and return well and hopefully get a good hit on the first ball.

Q. Is that what worked for you? You have a good record against her.
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Yeah, I do. Yeah, I do. But this is a completely different match. We haven't played in a while. It's going to be a new match.

Q. When you saw the draw, did you say, Ouch, how come I'm the unlucky one getting her? There's not too many floaters who were Grand Slam champs in the draw.
MARIA SHARAPOVA: If I can't beat them in the second round, I can't beat them at all.

Q. Lindsay spoke about being more aggressive when she plays you. Is that the way you'll approach that match as well?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Well, I think that's our game. We have pretty similar styles of game. You know, we're baseline players. We like to take advantage from the first ball. We like to get a good hit. Both of us have pretty good serves. You know, so it's going to be important to hit a high percentage of first serves in and, like I said, get a good hit on the ball, on the first ball.

Q. Lindsay was mentioning getting woken up early in the morning by the baby crying. Could you imagine going about the career, getting woken up at 5 a.m., dealing with the baby, going back to sleep?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Not really. But we're in completely different stages in our career. Obviously she loves tennis very much. It's obviously very difficult to have a baby and be back so soon. So, you know, her love and passion for the sport is pretty great. You know, it's wonderful to see someone who has already accomplished so much, you know, still going back and giving it all she has, yeah.

Q. So when you walked onto the grounds after Asia, thinking about last year...
MARIA SHARAPOVA: I didn't think about last year (smiling).

Q. Were you pretending you were here for the first time?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: No (laughter). That's not true either.

Q. Looking ahead, what were you thinking about this tournament, what you felt like you could do, what you wanted to do?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: I think I was just more happy with the fact that I had a really good four to five weeks of really solid training. I put the work in. This is just the time where you go out and you hope that the work that you put in just translates into the matches. Obviously you never know what can happen, how you're going to feel physically, how you're going to go out there.
A practice match or a practice is completely different than going out and playing in front of 10,000, 15,000, you know, people. It's completely different. You just hope, you know, when you finally go out on the court, you hope that work that you put in just translates.
You can't think about what you did in the past years. You can't think about what your results were. You just got to look forward to what's going to come up.

Q. Did that match against Justine at the Championships help you turn the corner?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: The whole week was just, you know, a great relief for me because I was very close to just saying a few weeks before that, This was not my year, it's just been really frustrating and difficult. But I didn't give up. I kept having little setbacks where I would train for a few days and then had to stop for a week.
Of course, that's frustrating because you start asking yourself, Well, where is this going? That's not the way to train. That's not the way you're going to become No. 1 again. I just thought of maybe going on vacation.
But I kept going. I kept working. And even though I lost that match, I had a really good week. You know, I played really solid tennis. I was able to have a vacation without thinking how the next year's going to start.

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Australian Open IMG Party

[*love me for me*]

@темы: наряды, AO

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[*love me for me*]

Маша обыграла Костанич со счетом 6:4, 6:3 и вышла во второй круг, где встретится с Линдсей Девенпорт.

@темы: AO

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фотосессия для Sony Ericsson

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@темы: фотосессии

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Шарапова стала лицом Sony Ericsson

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Мария Шарапова стала лицом компании по производству мобильных телефонов и аксессуаров Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications, сообщает официальный сайт российской теннисистки.

Sony Ericsson подписала с Шараповой эксклюзивный контракт сроком на четыре года. По его условиям, 20-летняя теннисистка примет участие в нескольких рекламных кампаниях. Она также будет работать совместно с дизайнерской командой Sony Ericsson над новой линией мобильных телефонов и аксессуаров к ним.

"Звездный статус Марии, ее решительность, динамизм, успешность и шарм идеально подходят под наш бренд", - заявил вице-президент Sony Ericsson Ди Дютта.

"Я восхищена возможностью поработать с такой известной маркой, как Sony Ericsson. Большинство людей знает меня как теннисистку, но у меня много интересов помимо спорта: мода, музыка, кино и дизайн, - отметила Шарапова. - Поэтому я уверена в успешном и плодотворном сотрудничестве".

В 2005 году компания Sony Ericsson заключила 6-летний контракт на $88 млн с WTA.

Газета.ru

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AUSTRALIAN OPEN INTERVIEW

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Q. The off-season for you, what's important about it when you have a tournament first up?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Uhm, most importantly it's about, you know, in the beginning of it, figuring out where you feel you need to work on, you know, what's most important to you. I mean, when you say "off-season," it's only about four to five, six weeks max of good training, depending on how good you do at the end of the year. So it depends on how long you take off.
You know, you really just try to focus on the things you want to work on, you know, put that effort into those weeks because hopefully that will be, you know, your training setup for about six months.

Q. Is it not important to literally recharge after what is a very full year?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Uhm, it is. I mean, two weeks for a tennis player seems like a very long time of no tennis. You know, after a week off of doing nothing, I feel completely bored and very strange. Especially when you're travelling somewhere and you're travelling without your tennis racquet, it's completely, completely weird.

Q. That being the case, I don't want to talk about your potential second‑round matchup, but Lindsay Davenport is a player who had a long time out of the game while she had a child. Are you surprised at how she's managed to come back the way she has?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Well, I mean, bottom line is you know that she's a dedicated champion. She's really good at what she does. You know, I'm sure that if she puts her mind onto something, something particularly like tennis, where she's very good at it, and gives it 100%, I'm sure that she, without a doubt, is going to be playing on a good level again. You know, but she's also at a different part in her life.
But saying that, I think, you know, we've got to take care of business in the first round first.

Q. Who would you say are your main threats?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Well, obviously Justine has had, you know, an incredible year last year. You know, she's the big favorite here, I believe. But, you know, I think that's why you put the nets up every single morning. That's why you have two players, not one, out there on the court. You have a chance in every single match, and so do your opponents.
But, you know, my only worry is just to take care of my business on my side of the net. You know, if I lose the match doing everything I can and giving it everything I have, then it's a good day at the office.

Q. How confident are you coming in here this week?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: I'm feeling really good. Uhm, you know, I had a really good off‑season. Injury‑free. You know, I worked really hard. I put a lot of dedication into it. Waking up every single morning, I was looking forward to practice, getting better. It was really refreshing because after a pretty difficult year, you know, it was great to be able to play tennis for such a long period of time without feeling concerned or worried about getting injured.

Q. When you come to a tournament where you were a finalist last year, is there more motivation to try to go that one step better?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Well, there always is. Even if you come into a tournament as the defending champion, you know, you remember the moments of that tournament, what you did well, how much you want to repeat that and do even better than you did or maybe, you know, win it twice.
I would love to. Of course, it would be an honor to win this tournament.

Q. You reached the finals last year, but you couldn't complete your job. How did you prepare this year to finish your job and how far do you think you can go?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Well, last year I was actually fortunate to be in the finals after the first‑round debacle. In a way, you know, it was a great result considering that. But, you know, every tournament, every year is a new year. You never know what will happen. This is my first tournament of the year, as it is almost every year, you know, apart from a few exhibition matches.
You know, it's that tournament where, you know, depending on how you do, depending on how you feel, it's kind of your start‑up for the year.

Q. You mentioned that debacle of last year. I guess as a result of that the rules have changed. They're allowed to close the roof during the match at their discretion. What is your reaction to that?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Well, I'm very happy that the Australian Open, all the organizers, listened to the players because that's very important, you know, when you know your opinions are heard. You know, there were also a few of the guys that were playing out there three out of five sets. They were in the fifth set also battling it out, while the other hundreds of players were in the comfort of the locker room.
So, yeah, I think a majority of the players are very excited about it and thankful.

Q. It seems there are a lot of women playing very well right now. Do you think the top of the game is perhaps as competitive as it's been?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Definitely. I think there's a huge depth in women's tennis at the moment. I think apart from Justine, who has been pretty dominant, especially towards the end of last year, I think there are a few girls that, you know, last year was their first year that they had really good results. You know, both of the Williams are always dangerous. And also you can never underestimate those that are hungry to be in the top 20 or to be in the top 10, you know, that go out and play against someone that's, you know, top five in the world or even top 10, because they go into those matches having nothing to lose. Sometimes that's just as dangerous as someone who is a top player.

Q. Has the new surface made much difference in the way the ball comes through?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: I guess a little bit. I mean, it's a great color. Nice shade of blue (laughter).
It feels good. You know, it does, yeah. I really like it.

Q. Is there any difference for you to play on the new surface?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: I don't think it's as sticky as the Rebound Ace, definitely, yeah.

Q. Is it good for you?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Yeah, it's great. I think it's great for the body. I think it's good for anyone's body. It's a lot easier, you know, on the joints, which is always good, especially when you're 6'2".

Q. A question I asked Serena, as well. Looks like a pretty full field on the women's side this year. All the top players there. Everybody in form. If you're in form, where do you put yourself among that group? Do you feel that your best tennis will beat anybody else's best tennis?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Well, I've proven it before. I've done it before. I don't think you can ever count me out. No matter how confident or not, no matter where my ranking is, you know, I'm one of the toughest competitors out there. You know, I never leave the court without giving a hundred percent, and that's why I think I gain a lot of respect from my fans and, you know, from the tennis audience. It's what I love to do.
Like I told you before, you know, I love the work that I put on the court and I know that someday it will pay off. You know, saying that, I'm still 20 years old. You know, I've said it many times, I don't think this is the peak of my career. I believe that there are many more years to go, you know, and I'm going to learn from all those experiences within those years.

Q. When would you imagine your peak might be?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: I don't know. I'm not psychic. I wish I could tell you.

Q. What's the difference between the Maria Sharapova who won Wimbledon so young and the Maria Sharapova today?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Oh, goodness. Tennis‑wise or just...

Q. You tell me.
MARIA SHARAPOVA: I hope that I'm still the same person. You know, my Wimbledon win has given me so many opportunities in so many different areas in life. You know, as a tennis player, I've grown and I've become a much more experienced player.
You know, like I say, with every win and every loss, you learn so much more about your game and what you need to improve. And I've had some good wins, I had some tough losses in the last three years since my victory in London. But, you know, honestly it seemed like a long time ago. I'm due for another one up there.
But, you know, like I said, as a person, I hope I have not changed. I still have the same great team around me that have known me before the days that I even started playing junior tournaments, you know, that keep me grounded on a daily basis. Little things still make me happy in life that make me laugh, give me the pleasures of life.

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MARIA BRINGS COUTURE TO THE COURT AT AUSTRALIAN OPEN

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Designed in Collaboration with the Tennis Star, the Custom Dress and Warm-Up Offers the Best in Performance Innovation While Reflecting Sharapova's Classic Style
Maria Sharapova, always fashionable, always fierce, will have a collection this spring that includes everything from a dress to her warm-ups. At the first round of the Australian Open, she will debut her custom dress, in a unique color for Maria that is inspired by her classic on-court style as well as Australia's natural landscape.
Maria's classic and feminine style led to the vibrant but natural colors and patterns that comprise her Australian Open apparel. With the extreme heat that often-times characterizes the tournament, Nike designers wanted to create a custom look that would feel high energy, but keep Maria cool when the heat is on.
Building from these insights, Nike designer Colleen Sandieson collaborated with Maria to design an outfit that was a pure reflection of Maria's style and character. "Maria's participation is an integral part of the process," said Sandieson. "As an athlete she has a definitive vision of how she'd like to look on court, and the final design is truly a testament to Maria's insight and Nike's design."
Sandieson expressed that the collection infuses both organic and modern elements. "The colors that we chose to use for Maria are fresh, but neutral because the Australian Open works with a laid back, subtle feel," said Sandieson. "The clothing draws out energy with really tropical colors." Pulling inspiration from the flora and fauna, Maria's opening day dress in the color "Sail" will bring a feminine touch to the tournament's Australian connection.
Re-design Focuses on Quality and Performance
When it came to the design of Maria's 2008 tennis apparel, the Nike design team chose to keep it simple. Her dress uses a neutral pallet that is heavily influenced by a modern off-white color, which also calls out to the natural and organic look that was derived from the Australian countryside. Maria wanted something that was young and funky but had very definitive detailing. To accomplish this, Nike had to first look back to the function of the game and the environment. Maria's dress combines a lightweight polyester jersey with mesh. Symmetrically placed mesh inlays are in the center front and center back of her dress so that she has zone cooling. As for Maria's interest in fine detailing, the mesh gives the garment a 360-degree texture. The front panels are pleated and tucked and the hem of the dress is also meshed and pleated. This gives a contrast in fabrication, but provides depth, movement and texture.
Function and Style
For her warm-up, Maria's classic style will be enhanced by the simple and lightweight design. The main goal of the design was to ensure that all of her custom pieces remained as lightweight as possible. To accomplish this, the warm-up jacket is an ultra-lightweight woven synthetic Dri-FIT. By weaving the fabric together it keeps it looser and allows for more breathing room. Elevating this lightweight breathability even further is the garment's strategically placed mesh lining. The silhouette is loose and short, once again optimizing mobility and breathing room.
In keeping with the feminine, organic and classic style that Maria brings to her game, the colors and designs of the warm-up mimic these qualities. In her warm-up there are subtle hints of the rich red plum color that will be reflected in Nike's spring '08 women's tennis collection as well. A soft and cool contrast between the main "Sail" and plum colors can be seen on all of the hemlines and in the stitching as well.
Accessories to Refine
To complete the look, accessories are key. From the red plum banana bag to her visor, Maria's look highlights the Australian foliage and loops together all of the outfit's thematic components. The bag is embossed with the emblematic floral print of the season, which was designed to represent the stunning flowers of the Australian terrain. Nike kept the design and functionality elements very simple this season, but Maria can always impress with some custom-designed surprises. This year, her banana bag has a surfboard key ring. Maria's stylistic charms have always been created with key moments and personalized elements in mind. Nike has designed charms for Maria in the likeness of her dog Dolce, and the red New York apple for last year's U.S. Open. Finally, as an added bonus to her attire, Maria will be wearing a visor that is designed for both function and fashion. The rich, dark plum color that is utilized on many of the spring '08 garments ads depth to the floral print that is embossed on the underside of the visor. Using the graphic detailing to darken the visor's bill actually produces an added bonus, aside from the visual element, because the shaded underside reacts as a sun deflector.
Court Couture
Maria feels most comfortable in classical looks that appear luxurious, so color choice and comfort are very important to her. Keeping these details in mind, Nike created a maximum impact performance and visual outfit without losing any feminine qualities. Maria will certainly have a strong court presence thanks to the "court couture" elements of the spring '08 collection.

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AUSTRALIAN OPEN DRAW RELEASED

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The draw for the 1st Grand Slam of the year at the Australian Open has been released and Maria is seeded 5 and will face Jelena Kostanic Tosic of Croatia in the 1st round. Maria has played Kostanic Tosic twice before and leads the series 2-0, they actually met here 2 years ago in the 3rd round and Maria won 6-0 6-1. Maria will play this match on either Monday or Tuesday.

Maria could face Lindsay Davenport of the United States in the 2nd round who is on a comeback after having a baby, Maria leads the series 4-1. The 1st seed Maria can meet is #32 seed Julia Vakulenko of the Ukraine in the 3rd round. Maria is seeded to meet #11 seed Elena Dementieva of Russia in the 4th round and top seed Justine Henin of Belgium in the quarters. Jelena Jankovic, defending champion Serena Williams and Amelie Mauresmo round off the draw in the top half.

In the bottom half, Svetlana Kuznetsova is the 2nd seed and Ana Ivanovic is the #4 seed. Other notable names are Anna Chakvetadze of Russia and Venus Williams of the United States.

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Тарпищев пошeл на условия Шараповой

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Макс Айзенбад, агент Марии Шараповой из компании IMG, попросил капитана сборной России Шамиля Тарпищева не привлекать экс-первую ракетку мира к участию в полуфинале Кубка Федерации, если наша команда туда попадет.

Как сообщает "Спорт-Экспресс", Тарпищев дал на это предварительное согласие, подчеркнув, что окончательное решение он примет только после февральского матча в Израиле, в котором Шарапова намерена дебютировать в составе российской сборной. Более того, Тарпищев намерен дождаться хотя бы предварительного состава сборной США, с которой наша команда, скорее всего, сыграет в Москве в случае успеха в Израиле.

Вероятно, в первую очередь просьба Айзенбада связана с тем, что полуфиналы Кубка Федерации-2008 стоят в расписании в середине апреля, когда Мария будет целенаправленно готовиться к Roland Garros. Зато с американками, скорее всего, сыграет Светлана Кузнецова, которая, в свою очередь, попросила Тарпищева не привлекать ее к участию в поединке в Израиле. Как бы то ни было, теоретически может сложиться ситуация, при которой в этом году Шарапова сыграет в Кубке Федерации только один матч.

Газета.ru

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[*love me for me*]

Day Dress

Evening Dress

@темы: наряды, AO

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MARIA TO LAUNCH NEW GOLD COLLECTION

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2008 is an Olympic year and Maria already has her mind set on gold. Next week, when the sports world watches the 20 year-old tennis superstar take to the court for her first round match at the Australian Open, she will be debuting, over her shoulder, the first piece from her new Sharapova Gold Collection of bags. Designed by Maria, and produced in partnership with Prince, the Sharapova Gold Collection will unite cutting-edge and top quality design features with stunning and luxurious aesthetics never seen before in a bag collection.

"I absolutely love working with Prince and had the best time taking this collection from initial drawings to final product," said Maria from Melbourne. "First, they are supreme quality tennis bags and totes designed specifically to meet the needs of players. Second, they are gold and who doesn't love gold? It is always in style and these bags look fantastic when they are over the shoulder or in your hand."

Aside from being both a Wimbledon and US Open champion and the world's most recognizable female athlete, Maria is also establishing herself as an international fashion icon and respected designer. Her unmatched understanding of player needs and keen fashion sense combined with Prince's obsession with delivering the most innovative, performance-driven equipment, resulted in a world-class line of bags, available in a six-pack, triple, tote, mini tote and backpack.

"In my opinion, players should head to the court with equipment that not only delivers in terms of quality and design, but also looks great," said Maria. "This collection accomplishes both and I am excited to unveil the first piece when I take the court next week in Melbourne."

Made primarily of heavy-duty gold nylon, the outside of the bags also feature accents of black in the strap and quilted black patent leather for the Prince logo.

"Maria is the rare combination of someone who pays close attention to the intricacies of performance equipment and also has a trend-setting sense of style and fashion," said Linda Glassel, Vice President of Marketing and Brand Image for Prince. "She helped usher in the future of racquet design with O3 technology, and always has her finger on the pulse of the fashion world. With this collection, she has once again shown her abilities in both areas and it couldn't be more perfect that we are launching it during an Olympic year, when gold is on everyone's mind, including Maria's."

The Sharapova Gold Collection will be available internationally beginning in March wherever Prince tennis products are sold with suggested retail prices ranging from $50 - $120.

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Маша на АО

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@темы: AO

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AUSTRALIAN OPEN PREVIEW

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Maria will begin her official 2008 campaign at the Australian Open in Melbourne which begins on Monday, January 14th. The Australian Open is the 1st Grand Slam of the year.

Maria has arrived in Melbourne and was practicing today at Rod Laver Arena and didn't seem phased by the hot condition. Maria was practicing her serve and return game.

If the tournament goes by the official rankings then Maria will be seeded #5 and so in theory could draw a top 4 player as early as the quarters. The main draw will be released on Friday.

This year's event will be played on a new surface "Plexicushion". Here is what Maria had to say about the new surface in Singapore last week: "Well I heard it's going to be a faster surface and I also heard that it's not going to be as sticky which is going to be beneficial for all players especially in extreme heat. The court gets very sticky and a lot of injuries can occur. So yes, I am very excited about it."

Maria has played this event 5 times before and her best ever result was reaching the final last year.

So keep checking back for all the latest on Maria at the Australian Open!