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Sharapova, Davenport make strong starts at Amelia Island

Top-seeded Maria Sharapova made a successful debut at the Bausch & Lomb Championships with a 6-1, 6-3 victory over Barbora Zahlavova Strycova of the Czech Republic on Tuesday.

“Coming into the match, you really don’t know what to expect because your opponent has already had a few matches on clay, and this is your first match,” Sharapova said. “So the most important thing today was just to try to get used to the atmosphere and the court and the opponent.”

Lindsay Davenport began her quest for a fourth Bausch & Lomb title with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Vania King, overcoming a lack of sleep caused by her nine-month-old son’s nagging cold.

Olga Govortsova pulled off a 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 upset of No. 4 Marion Bartoli of France, who continued her struggles at Amelia Island Plantation. She is 0-4 on the green clay and the only seeded player to lose in the first two days of the tournament.

Hungarian No. 8 Agnes Szavay, No. 13 Virginie Razzano of France and No. 15 Spaniard Anabel Medina Garrigues won second-round matches. No. 10 Alona Bondarenko, No. 12 Katarina Srebotnik and No. 14 Victoria Azarenka were first-round winners.

Sharapova, who ran her record for this year to 19-1, is playing this week to get an early start on her preparation for the French Open.
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