Maria Sharapova retirement: Reliving the tennis star's life and career through her own words | Soviet Union, Chernobyl, Serena Williams, WADA and more...
Russian superstar Maria Sharapova was once the most sought-after female athlete on the planet. She beat Serena Williams to lift her first Grand Slam title when she "was just a bony teenager" and went on to complete a career Grand Slam many years later. Injuries held her back, but Maria bravely fought her way back to the top before receiving a WADA ban which she claims not to be her fault. Her father took her to Florida at the tender age of seven as the Soviet Union was no place for a sprouting tennis star. Here are some brief highlights from her illustrious career through her own words, as described in her autobiography "Unstoppable: My Life So Far."
Russian superstar Maria Sharapova was once the most sought-after female athlete on the planet. She beat Serena Williams to lift her first Grand Slam title when she 'was just a bony teenager' and went on to complete a career Grand Slam many years later. In
Sharapova's father took her to Florida at the tender age of seven as the Soviet Union was no place for a sprouting tennis star. Here are some brief highlights from her illustrious career through her own words, as described in her autobiography 'Unstoppable: My Life So Far.' (Photo | Sharapova Twitter)
The beginning: Sharapova vividly remembers the early days of her life and how the game of tennis became a part of it. (Photo | AFP)
When your Soviet past comes haunting... (Photo | Sharapova Twitter)
Capitalism, socialism and the Soviet past... (Photo | AFP)
On her trademark 'screaming serves' and noisy returns. (Photo | AP)
Sharapova's family lived dangerously close to the ill-fated Chernobyl nuclear reactor in erstwhile Soviet Russia. The 6ft 2-tall superstar says there is all possibility for her height being a result of her mother being exposed to the radiation before the family fled the area. (Photo | AFP)
Believe it or not, Martina Navratilova had spotted Sharapova's talent when she was a little girl and asked her father not to let her drop the game. Destiny brought them both together once, many years later. (Photo | AFP)
On her first victory as a professional tennis player. (Photo | AFP)
This is how Sharapova in her autobiography narrates winning her first Grand Slam title. (Photo | AFP)
On rivalry with Serena Williams. (Photo | AFP)
About the career-threatening shoulder injury that she had to deal with at the age of 21. Sharapova was in her prime when the injury forced her out of the circuit and life was never the same again... (Photo | PTI)
Finally, achieving a career Grand Slam. (Photo | French Open Twitter)
On 7 March 2016, Sharapova revealed that she had failed a drug test at the 2016 Australian Open, which she described as the result of an oversight. She admitted to testing positive for meldonium. (Photo | AFP)
26/02/2020: The farewell. Maria made this short write-up on her official Twitter handle to announce her retirement. (Photo | Sharapova Twitter)
