Sports Thread #1 for 6/2/09: Sharapova Wins Only Two Games, Safina Battles Through, Murray Crashes Out And Rafa's Uncle Calls Paris Fans "Stupid"

Photo from Matthew Stockman of Getty Images (It was completely ugly today for Sharapova

The yups were once again prevalent for Maria Sharapova today. A comeback and another dramatic three set win, however, was not.

The three time Grand Slam champion crashed out in stunning form to Slovakian riser Dominika Cibulkova by the convincing score line of 6-0, 6-2. In fact, if it wasn't for the American Russian's grit and determination to not give up, the match could have easily ended up 6-0, 6-0, as Cibulkova was one point away from doing just so. Instead, Sharapova fought off four match points and had the crowd behind her to try to possibly make a historic comeback (a far cry from last year where the crowd was excoriating her with boos in her dramatic defeat to Dinara Safina in the 4th round). But Cibulkova displayed terrific grit and stayed the course, scoring the biggest win of her career in advancing to her first Grand Slam semifinal.

And that opponent facing her in that semifinal will be Safina, who went from "impervious" to "vulnerable" to "strong" in her come from behind win against the dangerous Victoria Azarenka 1-6, 6-4, 6-2. Safina, who came into this match conceding only five games thus far in the tournament, was throughly destroyed by the Belorussian baseline in the first set. Azarenka had 10 winners to only one unforced error, and just had her way with the world number one in the opening set. It looked like Safina would crumbled under the pressure of being the favorite, and that Azarenka would continue her ascendancy up the women's game. That seem to be the case, as Safina recovered to start the second set off to a 4-1 lead, only to let Azarenka come back to even the set at 4-all.

From then on, however, the magnitude of the moment got to Azarenka, and Safina turned it completely around. She broke Azarenka right back to go up 5-4, and then close out the set as her younger opponent made three straight service errors. Azarenka's emotions then erupted, as she slammed her racket on the court, and received the boos from the always perceptive French crowd. Safina went on the cruise in the final set, regaining the form that has most believing (including myself) that she will hoist the trophy on Saturday afternoon (morning here in New York).

And finally, Andy Murray is the third "Big 4" player to egress out of the tournament. In a match that perplexed his supporters and everyone else for the matter, the world number three was dispatched out of Roland Garros by Fernando Gonzalez 6-3, 3-6, 6-0, 6-4. It seemed that Murray would take control of the match after winning the second, but completely lost his way in the third, as the momentum shifted and the Chilean seized dominion of this match right back.

Murray displayed a lot of acumen by breaking Gonzalez while he served for the match at 5-3 in the 4th at love.........only then to get broken at love in what turned out to be the final game of the match. Maddening indeed.

Headaches all around for the losers indeed, but nothing the way Murray left the tournament today. Or Sharapova. Or even Nikolay Davydenko, as "Rafael Nadal conqueror" Robin Soderling made mincemeat of Davydenko today with an emphatic 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 win today on Davydenko's 28th birthday.

Ouch.

Update: And get this from Nadal's Uncle TonI, expressing his anger at how the French fans were fully behind Soderling and not his nephew on Sunday:

Rafael Nadal's uncle and coach Toni Nadal called Roland Garros spectators stupid on Monday for their treatment of his nephew during his shock French Open loss to Robin Soderling.

"There is only one set of supporters that is worse than the French and that is the Parisians."

"They say it themselves and it's true, the Parisian crowd is pretty stupid. I think the French don't like it when a Spaniard wins," he added. "Wanting someone to lose is a slightly conceited way of amusing yourself. They show the stupidity of people who think themselves superior."

The French crowd is know for irking so many over the years, and their actions on Sunday have clearly got under the skin of Rafa's uncle.