Russian tennis queen, Maria Sharapova, says she wants to take revenge against World No. 1, Victoria Azarenka for the defeat in the Australian Open final, as the two made it into the decider at Indian Wells on Sunday.
“She’s definitely the one to beat right now, someone that’s playing with a lot of confidence and all the momentum in the world,” Sharapova told the BNP Paribas Open official website. “I’d love to get my revenge for Australia and play much better, as well.”
Despite taking a 2-0 lead, Sharapova was thrashed by her Belarusian opponent 6-3 6-0 in this year’s Australian Open final.
“In our previous meetings we have had really tough matches, and I hope that the quality of tennis will be good and hopefully change a few things around. But it’s nice to have that opportunity again and to be in the final of this tournament,” the 24 year-old added.
Azarenka reached her first Indian Wells final by beating Angelique Kerber 6-4, 6-3. The Russian won the event in 2006, and made it through after Ana Ivanovic couldn’t continue her semi-final due to a hip injury.
It’s the Belarusian, who has a 4-3 edge over Sharapova in their head-to-head series, winning three of their last encounters.