By Alberto Amalfi | Monday, February 23, 2015
Maria Sharapova wasted little time acclimating to Acapulco.
The top-seeded Sharapova got down an opening break, then found her range and reeled off 12 of the final 15 games rolling American Shelby Rogers, 6-4, 6-1, at the Abierto Mexicano TELCEL tournament.
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"It's always difficult to start; your first match is never easy," Sharapova said. "You're getting used to conditions, a new place and new atmosphere. I felt really good and really happy to perform here in front of all the fans."
A festive crowd turned up for the top-seed's Acapulco debut.
"The first match is about adjusting to everything," Sharapova said. "The court is quite different to surfaces I competed at this year. So that's a a little bit of adjustment. The balls goes through the air because it's much warmer. You can train as many days as you want but until you go out and play a amatch thats when realy adjustments come into play."
Once Sharapova found her range she began stepping in and blasting shots into the corners. Sharapova won seven straight points to close the 74-minute victory. She celebrated taking a selfi with fans.
The second-ranked Russian raised her record to 13-1 this season with her lone loss coming to world No. 1 Serena Williams in the Australian Open final. Eleven of her 13 wins have come in straight sets.
Next up for Sharapova is a second-round match with either 18-year-old American qualifier Louisa Chirico or Colombian lucky loser Mariana Duque-Marino.
Sharapova's boyfriend, Grigor Dimitrov, is the reigning Acapulco men's champion. Asked if Dimitrov encouraged her to play Acapulco, Sharapova said the tournament fit her schedule after she helped lead Russia into the Fed Cup semifinals with a victory over an Agnieszka Radwanska-led Polish squad in Krakow.
"I think it's been a great experience so far," Sharapova said. "One of the first days we got to visit some of the cliffs and drive around Acapulco, a very unique opportunity. When I'm in a new city always nice to explore things."
Photo credit: Abierto Mexicano TELCEL