Sharapova breaks clay duck

Maria Sharapova claimed her maiden clay court title at the Bausch & Lomb Championships.

World number five wins first title on least favoured surface

Australian Open champion Maria Sharapova claimed her maiden clay court title with a straight-sets victory over Dominika Cibulkova at the Bausch & Lomb Championships in Amelia Island, Florida. Sharapova, the top seed, triumphed 7-6 6-3 against her 18-year-old Slovakian opponent, although it was a far from vintage performance. The Russian won her third event of the season in just under two hours despite committing five double faults and 33 unforced errors, suggesting there is still plenty of room for improvement on her least successful surface. The first set was a hard-fought affair featuring plenty of marathon points on the green clay, Sharapova eventually edging it 9-7 in a tie-break. She had come into the match the fresher of the two players having enjoyed a walkover in her semi-final when Lindsay Davenport withdrew due to injury. And that showed as Sharapova took the second set 6-3 to secure the 19th WTA tour title of her career. "I've been fortunate that I could start the clay season early and that I could get a win and my first title on clay, which is exciting," she said after improving her record to 22-1 in 2008. "This is definitely a big plus."