Maria Sharapova is reeling after a first-round exit at Wimbledon, and she thinks she has an idea of what went wrong.
Sharapova spoke after losing to Vitalia Diatchenko in three sets in the first round at Wimbledon and suggested that her scheduling this year was an issue.
“I would have loved to have played Birmingham. I felt I made that mistake of playing far too many tournaments in consecutive weeks,” Sharapova said, via Tennis World.
“The clay season was a lot of matches, much more than I’ve played in a really long time. Yeah, it would have been great to play an event, but I had to make a decision for my body and for my longevity rather than to go and play a few matches.”
Sharapova was referring to the Birmingham Classic, which is a tuneup for Wimbledon that’s played on grass. Sharapova played three straight hard court events earlier this year before transitioning to clay. She then played in four clay events including the French Open, where she reached the quarters.
Sharapova then did not play in any events prior to Wimbledon, where she showed some rust.
“I always find I think the transition from clay to grass has been a little bit tougher for me as I’ve gotten older. That’s just a matter of training, getting through the soreness in the first week or so. I don’t think it’s different for me than it is from anyone else,” she said.
Next time around, the 31-year-old might be wiser to cut out one of the clay events so she can feel good enough to get in a grass tuneup before Wimbledon.
