Garbine Muguruza blazes past Maria Sharapova in fearsome display

ByDan Quarrell

Updated 06/06/2018 at 20:27 GMT

Garbine Muguruza produced a magnificent display of power hitting as she blew Maria Sharapova off the court to win 6-2 6-1 and reach the French Open semi-finals.

It had been expected to be a tense and evenly-contested quarter-final, but the Russian simply could not cope with her opponent's intensity.

The 24-year-old Spaniard was in sublime form throughout as she wrapped up a convincing victory in just 70 minutes.

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Muguruza will now be considered the favourite for many people as the 2016 champion rests up before the semi-finals.

The third seed will next take on the winner of the match between Simona Halep and Angelique Kerber.

If Sharapova were to write another autobiography this tame quarter-final defeat is unlikely to feature too prominently.

It was her book ‘Unstoppable’, published last year, which had dominated the build-up to her scheduled fourth-round meeting with Serena Williams, until the American pulled out injured.

Williams had branded the book “hearsay” and expressed her surprise at just how much she featured in its pages.

But Sharapova hit back, saying: “I think it would be strange for me not to include someone that I have competed against for so many years.

Highlights: Muguruza v Sharapova

“When you’re writing an autobiography, I don’t think there is any reason to write anything that’s not true.”

It was probably the best return Sharapova managed all day.

Muguruza had raced into a 4-0 first-set lead, punishing the former world number one’s second serve.

She broke again at the start of the second set, and although this time Sharapova hit straight back Muguruza bulldozed her way through the rest of the set to secure her place in the semi-finals.

“I knew it was going to be an intense match, because I hadn’t played her for a long time,” said Muguruza.

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“I wasn’t thinking so much about the result, but I just was thinking about not dropping my level, not giving her a single point, and I guess that helped my performance.”

Muguruza will face world number one Simona Halep, who got the better of Angelique Kerber over three sets, in the semi-final.

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Halep got off to a poor start, with 10 unforced errors in the opening three games handing Kerber a double break.

The Romanian battled back to force a tie-break, only to lose it tamely and to her obvious frustration.

Halep secured an early break in the second and did not relinquish it despite some fierce pressure from two-time major winner Kerber, with one remarkable get at the net even prompting applause from the German.

With memories still fresh in the mind of their epic Australian Open semi-final in January, which Halep edged 9-7 in the third, they went to a decider.

There were no such fireworks this time, though, and as Kerber tired Halep sealed a 6-7 (2/7) 6-3 6-2 victory.

Halep, twice a runner-up in Paris including last year’s shock defeat to Jelena Ostapenko, is still looking for a first grand slam title.

She said: “I have no pressure. I’ve played well in this tournament. Every match was better and better. I had tough opponents – tomorrow I face another one.

“So I have no expectations, no pressure. I just want to play as I did today, and as I did every day. If I do that, I will be okay after the match, no matter what the result.”

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