Russia's Maria Sharapova overcame Belgium's Justine Henin-Hardenne to grab the 2006 U.S. Open women's singles trophy, her second grand slam since winning Wimbledon two years ago at the age of 17.
Powered by accurate serves and solid groundstrokes, Sharapova, who lost four of her five previous matches with Henin-Hardenne, finally found the game to defeat "The Boss," the petite (Justine stands at 5'4", Maria atr 6'2") world no. 2, who would have been assured of the no. 1 position had she won the title. She was solid and dominating the whole 90 minutes.
Gracious in defeat, Henin-Hardenne congratulated her opponent, saying, “She was a real fighter tonight. She played the better tennis. The best player won tonight and she really deserved it.” Not to be dismissed, however, is the fact that Henin-Hardenne became the first woman since Martina Hingis in 1997 to reach the final of the four Grand Slams in one year. She lost to Amelie Mauresmo, current world no. 1, at the Australian Open amidst controversies of her retiring midmatch due to stomach upset. She then won the French Open and again lost to Mauresmo at Wimbledon. Now, at the last Grand Slam of the year, she is the runner-up yet again. Nonetheless, she already has five Grand Slam titles under her belt.
After Justine netted the ball at matchpoint, Maria sank to her knees and covered her face with her hands. She then jumped and skipped with joy toward the net to shake the hands of the runner-up. Overcame with joy, she looked for her father in the stands to give him, and her hiting partner, a hug. She went out to get her cell phone, apparently to call her mother and then her bestfriend. She was given $1.7 M prize money, and kept her poise as the lid of her trophy fell as she hoist it above her head.
Maria Sharapova was born in Russia but had spent most of her life in the United States to train for her tennis, making the victory all the more special for the teenager. Coming into the scene backed up by tons of endorsements that pay her a lot more than winning slams would, her latest commercial for Nike has the catchphrase "I feel pretty," she is definitely the most talked about player on tour today. But she doesn't want to be known as someone who is all style but no substance. With this big win, she gets to prove that she is, first and foremost, an accomplished athlete.
