Rogers Cup 2019: Anett Kontaveit wins dramatic opening round over Maria Sharapova 

Maria Sharapova had quite a fight on her hands and ultimately came up short at the Rogers Cup Monday night. A true show of skills from Anett Kontaveit kept her in tow with the former number one on centre court.

Pressing into action, a third set was when a dramatic game changed the course of events and gave the Estonian a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 win at the Aviva Tennis Centre.

The two met once on clay prior to this where Sharapova took the victory in a comfortable place. Since then, she has struggled with a shoulder injury that has hindered her ability to produce victories. Pulling out of tournaments took her out of the spotlight with the hope that her physical problems would be solved.

She came through a rough opening service game where errors gave Sharapova the edge necessary to capture the break. She didn’t expect to have the same problems, giving Kontaveit the break back.

The duo got on serve with the Estonian notching the first with the Russian superstar right behind. The former World No.1 handed her the sixth game under her belt before she went after Kontaveit’s service in the seventh, gaining the lead in the end.

Sharapova didn’t let go, making sure to contain her end smartly, closing out the first set in 52 minutes. While it saw her make two double faults, the aces came in hand with the line drive winners she was putting on court. It was assured that more would need to be done in order to conduct a better run into the second.

She then watched the World No.19 break her down with a shutout in the first and get a jump in the second. Sharapova answered with a force of deuce where, after saving a third break point, the 32-year old leveled the score.

The Russian chose to mix things up and break Kontaveit, only to get broken back in the fourth. The next game stood out as the longest of the match, taking seven minutes to complete a four deuce draw before the Estonian found a way to hold.

In a conference on court with her coach Nigel Sears, he expressed his happiness on her level of performance and told her that her opponent hasn’t played much to be fully competitive. She used that boost of confidence to break Sharapova and consolidate it with a hold in the seventh to regain control. The eighth was a contest with Sharapova trying to manage a stronger stance.

After committing a second double fault, she came back with an ace to force deuce. Mistakes continued to rattle the 32 year old that ultimately gave Kontaveit a chance. She clinched the advantage point after three breaks to serve for a shot at the third set.

Wasting no time whatsoever, Kontaveit raced away into the lead and conquered the ninth with a serve to love, sending the two all the way to the distance after 51 minutes.

It turned out to be an all-out fight to the end as both Sharapova and Kontaveit were willing to go all the way for a win. Sharapova started with a strong hold, followed by the Estonian who gave the Russian just enough but could not win a break early on.

They continued to play well through eight games with no clear winner in sight. The ninth game became the most dramatic of all, going 17 minutes and nine breaks until Kontaveit won it in the end.

Only a game away from the match, the 16th seed won the first point, drawing an error from Sharapova. The 32-year old gained a footing but lost it on a challenge that didn’t go her way leveling the two. A great bounce handed Kontaveit match point as she clinched a 2 hour and 40 minute battle as she watched Sharapova’s return landing long of the baseline.

Both players combined for 208 points and 14 double faults with Kontaveit, finishing with 78 percent success from the first serve and five of eight break points won. With the popular wild card out early in a tournament, the 16th seed would prepare for a tight contest featuring either Venus Williams or Carla Suarez Navarro on Wednesday.