No wonder Maria Sharapova is irritated by the fact that many people have written her off just because she lost in the third round of the US Open the year she defended her title. In the so called weekly doodles at her official website, in order to prove that she’s here to stay, Masha depicted all the hardships that she went through on her way to the top:
“Anyways I know it’s just as tough for my fans to handle my losses as it is for me, but let me point something out….I didn’t leave my mom at the age of 7 for nothing. I didn’t spend 6 hours a day practicing in the Florida sun at the age of 9 for nothing. I didn’t spend those extra hours on the back courts with my dad figuring out if I’m going to play right-handed or left-handed for nothing. I didn’t sleep in little cods for 3 years eating oatmeal out of a packet, while playing ITF’s in the middle of nowhere for nothing. And I certainly didn’t sit at the kitchen table, way past dinner, perfecting Russian essays and math equations until they met my mother’s standards, for nothing. All this has helped me build character and there’s no greater asset than being able to stand up for yourself. No matter how many losses I will have in my career, I will always know what has brought me to this point…..and that’s hard work. I know that I have become a well known name around the world, therefore my losses are a bigger deal than my wins but don’t forget that everyone makes mistakes and everyone has their down moments….this is not the first time and realistically won’t be the last. Looking forward to getting myself up there again.”
I agree with Maria, it makes sense, everyone loses from time to time. She is yet to win many titles, that’s for sure. Haha, but I was glad she lost to Radwanska, it made the US Open more interesting.
Look what fellow blogger Diane wrote on this topic, great article. Here’s an excerpt:
“This type of bashing, though de rigeur in a culture that loves to build people up, then knock them down–is simply not fair…These fans, however, were relatively silent when Marion Bartoli demolished Justine Henin in the Wimbledon semifinals. The difference? Sharapova is a big media star, and Henin isn’t. That’s because our culture likes to promote long-legged blondes whose faces have not even fully formed, and then attack them when they do not live up to their superstar status.” Good point!
