No. 14 seed Maria Sharapova blew 18-year-old Beatrice Capra away today with a 6-0, 6-0 thumping.
What Sharapova’s excellent play didn’t blow away, the blustery conditions caused by the remnant of Hurricane Earl did. Capra was not able to duplicate the level she played at in her earlier wins over No. 95 Karolina Sprem and 18th-seeded Aravane Rezai.
Last year in the third round, 17-year-old Melanie Oudin went into Arthur Ashe Stadium and beat Sharapova in a remarkable moment on the way to the young American’s trip to the quarterfinals. Oudin was a bit more seasoned, though it’s hard to deny that her win over Sharapova last year might have had as much to do with the Russian’s preparation as Oudin’s spunky play. Sharapova wasn’t “match tough” after spending a good part of the year recovering from shoulder surgery in October 2008.
This year, it was the same round and same court. But it was a day better suited for flying a kite than hitting tennis balls, and Capra didn’t have a chance against the more experienced Sharapova.
“This is probably the toughest conditions we’re going to get,” Sharapova said. “But I think last year, it was a similar situation. Third round, quite windy. I had a young opponent who came out and played great tennis. Today, I wanted to make sure I came out, concentrated and was consistent.”
It was no easy task on a day when Capra’s visor got blown off her head early and lets had to be called a number of times because of wind-whipped napkins, hot dog wrappers and towels blowing across the court.
The conditions were the same for everyone _ it’s just that some deal with it better. No surprise that Sharapova, a former world No. 1 with three major titles to her credit, got the job done.
Next up for Sharapova is top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki, a 6-1, 6-0 winner over Yung-Jan Chan. Wozniacki has lost only three games through three rounds, while Sharapova struggled a little early on losing 8 games her first match, 3 her second and 0 the last match.
The Sharapova/Wozniacki match-up should provide a great match, and a good test for both players. Undoubtedly it will not be as easy as they both experienced in their last matches.
