Sharapova could be coming to Sydney Russian tennis superstar Maria Sharapova could be headed to Sydney for the first time after requesting a wildcard for next month's Medibank International. One of the world's most photographed athletes, Sharapova will contest the Auckland Classic from January 3-8 before deciding whether or not to round out her Australian Open preparations in the harbour city. Ordinarily, officials would already have handed out their quota of wildcards a week before the event, but Sharapova will understandably receive the red-carpet treatment. Tournament director Craig Watson will give the former world No.1 and three-times grand slam champion right up until the tournament-eve draw to commit to the January 9-15 hardcourt event. "I would love to see her in the draw and so would her legion of fans here in Sydney," Watson said on Wednesday. "I received a message from Maria's agent asking if a wildcard could be held for her if she decides to play the Medibank International Sydney. "Maria is certainly one of the most popular players in the world, not just in tennis but in all of women's sport. "Russian women players have performed incredibly well at the Medibank International Sydney in the past and I believe the court surface and facilities will be of great benefit to her as she prepares for the Australian Open." Sharapova, 23, has never played in Sydney and her appearance would add yet more star power to an already stunning line-up featuring the world's top three - Caroline Wozniacki, Vera Zvonareva and Kim Clijsters, as well as Australian No.1 Samantha Stosur. All up, seven of the world's top 10 women's players are venturing to Sydney. Sharapova was the first Russian woman to be ranked No.1 in the world. Her three major titles - among a career tally of 22 - came at Wimbledon in 2004, the US Open in 2006 and Australian Open in 2008. Currently ranked 18th, Sharapova made an impressive comeback this year from career-threatening shoulder surgery, collecting titles in Memphis and Strasbourg and reaching finals in Birmingham, Stanford and Cincinnati. 簡單翻譯一下， 莎娃的經紀人有向雪梨女網賽(Jan. 9-15)申請外卡， 所以莎娃將會在奧克蘭女網賽(Jan. 3-8)開打前決定是否參加雪梨女網賽。 世界前十的女網好手中已經有七位答應參加雪梨女網賽。 _____________________________________________________________________________ 希望莎娃好好決定，不要累壞了~"~ --

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