Maria Sharapova makes victorious return in Mallorca

TIL Desk Sports/ Maria Sharapova defeated Viktoria Kuzmova of Slovakia to make progress in the 2019 Mallorca Open. Tuesday’s appearance was the Russian player’s first in four months after a shoulder injury.

Sharapova, ranked number 85 in the world, faced fierce resistance during the first set and then eased past the 21-year-old Slovak to win the first match she has played in since January 7-6 (10-8) 6-0.

“It’s my first win in about three or four months,” Sharapova was quoted as saying on the WTA website. “It’s great to be here in Mallorca, what a great place to train and have a warm-up tournament.

“It’s been amazing for all of us here, and it’s just been nice to experience it for the first time. I absolutely love Mallorca. I’ve been here for a couple weeks and I feel like a local, visiting some places on my days off.

“But mostly, I’ve been training, getting ready for this tournament, which is really important for me,” she added.