In pictures: Maria Sharapova enjoys her time in Paris
Maria Sharapova is basking in the beauty of the City of Light, Paris. The former World No. 1 seems to be having a great time by herself as she walked the streets of the city where she tasted most Grand Slam success, winning two of her five Majors.
The Russian star, who now lives in the US with her fiance Alexander Gilkes, welcomed her first child on July 1, 2022. Her son's name is Theodore, and he's now a little over seven months old. Sharapova once remarked that she always looked forward to this beautiful part of life and was excited to watch Theodore grow up.
She turned pro on her 14th birthday in 2001 and hung up her racquet in February 2020, with her last match coming against Croatia's Donna Vekic in the first round of the Australian Open. Apart from the two French Open titles, Sharapova lifted another three Grand Slams in Melbourne, Wimbledon and New York.
The 35-year-old took to Instagram earlier today to share a few stunning photographs and videos of herself having a gala time in Paris. She started with a video, saying:
"Paris, you are always a good idea."
Here are the pics she shared:
"Ons Jabeur would have been a nightmare to play against" - Maria Sharapova
Leading OTT platform Netflix released the first five episodes of the tennis documentary Break Point last month. Maria Sharapova was one of the guests to appear and speak about the new players. The Russian was all praise for World No. 3 Ons Jabeur, who reached the final at Wimbledon and the US Open last year.
While the Tunisian lost to Elena Rybakina in the title clash at SW19, she lost to World No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the Flushing Meadows final. The 28-year-old is the first player from Tunisia to reach a Grand Slam final and win a WTA 1000 tournament — the 2022 Madrid Open.
Sharapova acknowledged the hardships that Jabeur has faced and said that she would be no match for the Tunisian.
"To come from nowhere, without any resources, without investments and getting past all the barriers and significance of what that means for her country, for herself, for her family, it's incredible," Maria Sharapova said. "When I look at Ons, I think that I wouldn't have matched up well against her. She would have been a nightmare to play against. Thank God I'm retired, because that slice — oh God."
Jabeur lost early at the Australian Open this year.