It seems that there's always to a way through which the universe is balancing the plates. The WTA professional tour had some of its own balance lessons lately having Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova as the lead actors.
Serena Williams produced a huge shock by announcing her pregnancy and the decision to call an end to this season while on the other side, almost simultaneously, Maria Sharapova who was subject to a 15-months ban from tennis after flunking a drug test in January 2016 was on the verge of making her comeback in women's singles circuit.
Arguably, two of the most prominent figures of women's tennis throughout the past decade, Serena and Sharapova had a strange relay exchange.
Sharapova benefits from two valuable wild-card entries next
On April 26, Sharapova's suspension came to an end so the Russian was able to put her feet on the tennis court in Stuttgart. Although at some point it seemed that she might end up adding the fourth Stuttgart title in her showcase, it all ended up in the semis. It was Kristina Mladenovic of France putting and end to Sharapova's run. Despite losing the match and the unique chance to cement her comeback with a WTA title, the former world no. 1 representing Russia should be thrilled with the result.
Today, a new update to the official ranking put Sharapova on the 262nd spot in women's singles having played only one tournament.
Instead of chasing around smaller WTA events in order to improve her ranking, she will step off the stage this week and she'll definitely prepare for the upcoming two big tests in Madrid and Rome where she was given a wild-card entry. In case she will have a decent run on these two, her improved ranking will be just enough to have a guaranteed entry in Wimbledon.
Regarding the French Open access, an official response is expected on May 16th. If the organizers won't give her a wild-card she might as well play in the qualifying stages. Given the impact Sharapova might produce having her on the main draw at the French Open, to give her a free entry could be an acceptable compromise.
The Russian could reanimate the WTA Tour
Given the latest experiences on the women's tennis, it seems that Sharapova being back on the tour competing is a necessary incentive. Now that Serena Williams is off the chart, there is no other player capable of making the professional tour its own realm.
Angelique Kerber is far from last year's pace while other younger competitors like Pliskova, Halep or Muguruza are lacking consistency. So, it would be quite exciting to watch how the action will unfold now that the Russian tennis star, 5 times Grand Slam champion, is back on the grand stage.
