MOSCOW, June 6 (R-Sport) – Tennis world No. 2 Maria Sharapova will face world No. 1 Serena Williams in the French Open final on Saturday after delivering a straight-set defeat to third-ranked Victoria Azarenka in the semifinals on Thursday.
The Russian star, whose performance was far from flawless, reached her second consecutive final at Roland Garros with a 6-1, 2-6, 6-4 victory in two hours and 10 minutes.
The defending French Open champion will look to defend her title on Saturday against Williams.
Sharapova, who nearly caved under a crush of mistakes in her quarterfinal match against Jelena Jankovic, struggled with her serve throughout on Thursday, making 11 double faults and 39 unforced errors.
Azarenka, who has beaten Sharapova seven times in 13 career match-ups, broke Sharapova’s serve in the first game. The Russian, however, retaliated in dominating fashion, taking the next six games in a row.
Azarenka, of Belarus, made only three unforced errors in her victorious second set.
But Sharapova pulled herself together during a 30-minute rain delay and came out strong in the deciding set, firing 22 winners and seven aces.
Williams and Sharapova have never played each other at the French Open and Saturday's final will be their first Grand Slam match since Wimbledon in 2010.
Williams owns their head-to-head series 13-2, winning most recently in the Madrid final last month. The American hasn't lost to the 26-year-old Russian since 2004.
