I've been playing against older and stronger competition my whole life. It has made me a better tennis player and able to play against this kind of level despite their strength and experience.

Despite her powerful game Sharapova's greatest asset is considered to be her mental toughness and competitive spirit with Nick Bollettieri stating that Maria Sharapova is "tough as nails". She then defeated 26th seed Alexandra Dulgheru 3–6 7–66 7–65 in the quarterfinals in a match that lasted 3 hours and 28 minutes the longest match of her career. 2008: Australian Open champion and recurrence of shoulder injury
Sharapova was seeded fifth at the Australian Open but was not considered a favorite.

She has been in seven Grand Slam finals with a record of 4–3. In June 2011 Maria Sharapova was named one of the "30 Legends of Women's Tennis: Past Present and Future" by Time and in March 2012 was named one of the "100 Greatest of All Time" by Tennis Channel. Sharapova made her professional breakthrough in 2004 at age 17 when Maria Sharapova defeated two-time defending champion and top seed Serena Williams in the 2004 Wimbledon final for her first Grand Slam singles title.