There are few tennis records that have as many high points as that of Maria Sharapova. Among 29 career titles are every Grand Slam singles title; for every million banked in prize money for the recent world No.1 there are countless more earned in lucrative endorsements.
Yet ask the 26-year-old what else she could possibly hope to achieve in an already long career and Sharapova is quick to share her hard-earned perspective.
“When you’re doing it for so many years of your life there are moments where you felt like need a pick‑me‑up. I didn’t play for a few months, and that was the reason for me to get back out there,” said the Russian, who is playing her first WTA event in more than four months at Brisbane International 2014 after she was sidelined by a shoulder injury in 2013.
“I know when I’m healthy how I can play and what I’m capable of doing. I needed to get healthy. So that was the motivation on its own.”
Knowing that tennis careers have a time limit and feeling fully fit after some solid training blocks and an exhibition appearance in Colombia, Sharapova is determined to make the most of every opportunity presented.
“In tennis, time goes really fast,” she pointed out. “You have to realise that the decisions you make, you have to make them selfishly in this business to be better, to know what’s right for you.”
Those tough decisions include the recent appointment of Sven Groeneveld as coach, Sharapova believing that the former mentor of Monica Seles and Mary Pierce, among others, is a valuable addition to her team.
“From the first time we met I really liked what he had to say,” she said, adding that she gained important insight from the times that Groeneveld coached against her in earlier WTA matches. “I like when someone comes in and is honest and truthful and says it like it is. He’s that. He puts it all out on the table. He’s a team player. He works with everyone on my team, something I was missing for a little bit of time.”
Such perspective, Sharapova points out, is something that’s taken years to develop – and something that’s perhaps unique to the prodigy who was transplanted from Russia to the United States at age seven, and became the fourth-youngest Grand Slam champion when she claimed 2004 Wimbledon at age 17.
“With time you realise what’s the best direction for you in everything: In coaching, in life, in perspective, and things. I think we all grow in different areas and learn a lot about ourselves and our games. I certainly know what I feel I need at this point in my career.”
Equally important is a balanced approach in her personal life – something that comes naturally to Sharapova even with a similarly talented and ambitious player, 2013 Brisbane finalist Grigor Dimitrov, as her boyfriend.
“Of course we share a lot of the same things just because we have an elephant in the room that’s called tennis,” she laughed when asked about how the tennis couple balances their professional and personal lives.
> Purchase Brisbane International 2014 tickets
“But there are so many other things to life that are besides tennis, and there are a lot more things to discuss than forehands and backhands and strings and racquets, which we share similar ideas and things of. That’s been really nice.”
For now, though, it’s tennis that’s front and centre for Sharapova – starting with Brisbane International 2014, an important stop in her carefully managed schedule. “Of course, you have higher expectations because you know what you’re capable of what you’ve achieved,” she said of her much-anticipated comeback.
“I want to bring the work I’ve done in the off‑season, try to bring that onto the court as soon as I can. Will that happen this week? I don’t know … (but) I know that if I have the effort I had in the off‑season I’ll be at a level I want to be.”