2012 OLYMPICS: SHARAPOVA VS. WILLIAMS, FEDERER VS. MURRAY IN TENNIS SINGLES FINALS
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 04 Aug 2012
Maria Sharapova entered the women's singles tennis final with a win over fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko, 6-2, 6-3. The pretty third seed, playing in her first Olympic Games, carried Russia's flag during the opening ceremony. With her overpowering serves Sharapova was so forceful in the first set.
The 14th seed Kirilenko, was a quarter-finalist during last month?s Wimbledon, had some moments of stiff competition in the second set and was a break ahead at 3-2, but Sharapova, the 2012 French Open titlist, answered with wins of four games in a row enroute to her second match point.
In the final Sharapova will face 2012 Wimbledon champion Serena Williams, who prevailed with a 6-1 6-2 win over world number one Victoria Azarenka of Belarus. They met during the semifinals of the Wimbledon 2012, where Azarenka put up a good fight, but in the Olympics it was Williams who was so dominant.
Williams and Sharapova will now face each other for the gold medal and also for the record to become only the second woman after Steffi Graf to win all four grand slams and the Olympic title in their career. Kirilenko and Azarenka will face in the bronze medal match.
Roger Federer of Switzerland will face Andy Murray of Great Britain in the men's tennis singles final, a rematch of last month's Wimbledon championship. Federer gained a final seat when he defeated Juan Martin Del Potro of Argentina, 3-6 7-6 (7/5) 19-17.
The semi-final match took four hours and 26 minutes, and it broke the time of Rafael Nadal's victory over Novak Djokovic of Serbia at the 2009 Madrid Masters as the longest three-set men's singles match in the Open era.
Federer, who won gold in the men's doubles with Stanislas Wawrinka in 2008, is now guaranteed at least a silver medal, while Del Potro must recover to battle for bronze medal. Murray advanced to the final after a radiant 7-5 7-5 victory over Djokovic in the second semi-final match.
Murray has never beaten Djokovic at a grand slam tournament, but his great Wimbledon run took its energy into the Olympics and he played amazingly in his victory over Nicolas Almagro of Spain. Djokovic posted a big challenge, but Murray was so persistent for the win and the opportunity to a showdown with Federer, the number one men?s player in the world.
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