Well, Well, Well......

by Matt Donaldson

It hasnt happened very often in the past, but here we are, in the middle of the week, and Maria is still kicking metaphoric ass (can we say that on tennisrulz?? i think we can!). Following my efforts over the weekend regarding articles for this site, im going to write another mentionning how she has played this week for those who dont have access to UK media, and know how shit the Birmingham website is.

After qualifying, she played Russian Evgenia Koulikovskaya, sporting a short white dress, and a purple Nike visor sort of thing. Maria played some fantastic tennis, and it looked like she enjoyedbeing back on a faster surface after playing on clay for the last few months. Fortunately Glyn was lucky enough to blag a pass for the event, and he watched her match. After she won, he txted me whilst at work, first to mock me, and second he mentionned that if she played like she had played in that match, she could win the event.

When i read it, i first just remembered it was from Glyn, and recalled how much of a tit he is. But then i remembered that he had always been a little sceptical about Maria and he game, and he wouldnt say something like that if it didnt have some truth behind it.

Anyway, i certainly didnt expect a victory in the next round. Dechy may not have been in electrifying form, but in most cases this year, Maria has showed signs of promise and indeed her great potential, but ran out of steam towards the end, something that isnt a bad thing due to her age. But against Dechy she didnt even have time to get tired or lose focus, beating her 6-3, 6-2, which even for someone in the top section of the game, is a good performance against a top player.

And today, against the Swiss beauty (!!!!) Marie Mikaelian, she faced another tricky tie. But again, just as in her last two matches, Maria flew out of the blocks, and didnt give her opponent the time, or the opportunity to impose herself and take advantage of Maria's inexperience. Winning the match 6-0, 7-5 is another stunning performance, and one which brings hope for the rest of the week, and dare we say it, even Wimbledon??????

Anyway, the thing that has brought Maria the most attention this week is the noise she makes on court. I always knew it was loud, but to get complaints from another court seems ridiculous!!! However, the fact is that as womens tennis gets increasingly dominated by power players, more effort has to go into shots. When that effort is put inot the game, then some noises are going to be made. The rules are that a players game cannot be interfered with, and if the noises are part of Maria's game, which i believe they are, then its a little harsh to be penalised. Rules are imposed on noise, but does a player lose concentration when the crowd cheers?? No. Players can channel out noise whilst playing. They always seem to when asked about any home influence a crowd may have while playing. The fact is that Maria has the game to challenge the top 10, and not in a few years. Maybe as soon as next year. The end of next year and Maria could find herself really pushing the worlds best as she gains experience. If she has the game, and looks as fit as she does at the same time, then the comparisons to Kournikova need to stop, the complaints need to stop, and people need to be talking about the first Sharapova.