Maria Sharapova’s shaky 2018 just hit another bump
The five-time Grand Slam champion has withdrawn from next week’s Miami Open due to a left forearm injury.
Since returning from a 15-month doping sentence, Sharapova has seen mixed results. She made a statement with an impressive first-round upset against Simona Halep at the US Open before winning the Tianjin Open last October, her first WTA title in two years.
The 30-year-old made a semifinal run at the Shenzhen Open in January before being bounced at the Australian Open by Angelique Kerber in the Round of 32. Since then, she’s lost consecutive first-round matches at the Qater Open and Indian Wells, which she’s won twice in her career.
After her loss to Naomi Osaka at Indian Wells, Sharapova split with her longtime coach Sven Groeneveld. The pair had worked together for four years, and Sharapova described the split as a mutual decision.
“I’ve known that since the comeback that I have to work to get myself to be in a seeded position, and to get what they call a better draw, all those things,” Sharapova said after the Osaka loss. “That takes work, that takes time, I’m not afraid of any of that.”
American Jennifer Brady has taken Sharapova’s spot in the main draw at the Miami Open.
