US Open: Sharapova Zooms from Wild Card to Favorite
The road to redemption is by nature a bumpy one.
So navigating it at breakneck speed can make for a number of dramatic moments.
Just ask Maria Sharapova, who returned from a 15-month suspension to win a key match in the Italian Open, still be denied an entry to the French Open, get an invitation to Wimbledon but forced to retire with an injury, to making an appearance in the US Open.
And in Flushing Meadows, the 6-1/185cm Russian just established herself as the player to beat in women's singles:
That sorta thing will happen after the defending champion -- Germany's Angela Kerber -- goes down in first-round flames and Sharapova knocks out the No 2 seed, Simona Halep.
Of course, this being women's tennis -- and Sharapova in particular -- it's not only about what they did, but what they did it in.
Sharapova didn't disappoint:
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The news here is that this is a Nike production, as in the Nike that dropped her like a hot vodka shotglass when she was served her suspension.
Nothing says forgiveness quite like $100million in endorsements.
Sharapova's still a villain in the eyes of many ...
... partially because she's earned more than diva extraordinaire Serena Williams -- who isn't blonde-&-toned -- but that aside, those weren't fake emotions on display after match point.
If Sharapova holds serve the rest of the tourney, it'll be a return more than a comeback. And women's tennis can use it.