Sharapova reaches first final since drugs ban

Monitoring Desk

TIANJIN: Former World No 1, Maria Sharapova crushed Chinese player Peng Shuai 6-3, 6-1 in semifinal of Tianjin Open on Saturday to qualify for first final since return to court after a 15-month doping ban.

The Russian tennis star easily beat the opponent Chinese third seed in the one hour and 18 minutes as she was playing on a wildcard in the seventh tournament of her comeback.

Sharapova will face 102nd-ranked Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka in the final as it is her first since she won the Italian Open in May 2015.

Sharapova has had a stop-start and injury-hit season since her controversial return at Stuttgart in April, following her ban for using the banned substance meldonium.

Sharapova, one of the world´s highest-earning female athletes, will now expect to win her 36th career title and end a trophy drought of more than two years, the longest since her debut win in 2003.