Sharapova Out for 2008, Hopeful for 2009

Although she hadn't officially qualified yet, things were looking good for Maria Sharapova to be a part of the Sony Ericsson Championships - Doha 2008, as she was the leading player in the hunt for the remaining berths for the elite eight-woman event. But a nagging right shoulder injury that has kept her out of action since Wimbledon will now keep her out through the end of the 2008 season.
 
Sharapova's 2007 season was hindered by a hurt right shoulder and she had withdrawn from two events early in 2008 - Miami and Eastbourne - because of the same injury. In the summer she continued to struggle with it and made the critical decision to miss the Olympics and US Open, the first major tournaments she was forced to miss in her entire career (since qualifying for her Grand Slam main draw at the 2003 Australian Open she hadn't missed a single Grand Slam).
 
On her website, she has announced she will be kept out the rest of the season.
 
"I've been progressing really well, but the recovery is taking a lot longer than I had selfishly planned," Sharapova said. "Therefore, my team and I decided to 'shut it down' for the season."
 
Sharapova played the Sony Ericsson Championships every year between 2004 and 2007, amassing an impressive 13-5 record at the event. She is a one-time champion (2004), one-time runner-up (2007) and two-time semifinalist (2005, 2006). Five players have already qualified for the 2008 event - namely Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic, Dinara Safina, Serena Williams and Elena Dementieva - and Sharapova is currently No.6 in the Race to the Sony Ericsson Championships standings. She will have to wait until 2009 for another shot at the tournament.
 
Sharapova went 22-1 to start 2008, winning titles at the Australian Open, Doha and Amelia Island, and reaching the semifinals of Indian Wells. But she cooled off somewhat after that, not reaching a final in her last five events (she reached the quarterfinals of Charleston and the semifinals of Rome, but had pre-quarterfinal exits at Roland Garros, Wimbledon and Montreal).