The 17-year-old Sharapova started off hitting three aces. Her very good start could not prevent Elena Dementieva from taking the first set after breaking Sharapova serve in the fifth game.

In the second set the game was quite a different one. Dementieva saw her service games being broken three times; the fourth, the sixth and the eighth game went to Sharapova. Only in the fifth game Dementieva saw a chance to break back but Sharapova hard returns on Dementieva’s weaker service did some damage.

Sharapova was leading 4-1 in the third set of the match. The seventh game was one of high quality where both players started to hit winner. Dementieva came back to 5-3 but saw that the match was practically over. Sharapova held two matchpoints for could not convert them, she wasted them with unforced error; too eager to finish the match with points she could not make.

Serving for the match Sharapova almost gave away her game when Dementieva fought herself back to 30-40 when Sharapova hits an unforced error ball long. The debutant at the Swisscom Challenge comes back to deuce and hits a winner to convert her third matchpoint.

“It was a great match”, Sharapova said, “I took the crucial point and dictated with different strokes, in the first set I didn’t attack her service but in the 2nd and 3rd it was much better”.

Dementieva said:” Her service was good but we played a good game and it was very close. And I was doing the right things. I was close to breaks. Against Maria you know what you have to do, it only matters if it works out. Against Myskina you sometimes don’t know what you have to do to beat her.”

Sharapova is getting more experience and making good us of the knowledge she pick up along the way she said. “But there are a lot of big things I need to improve. Like long matches take a lot, I need to work on my physics more. And we always have to take care of our body. Playing three tournaments in a row is max, especially for my age. But playing more tennis gives you more confidence although you get tired I always feel good tennis wise. I am going to train in Spain for a week and I will visit Zurich tomorrow. I only had time to find a Starbuck and have a good coffee”.

Elena Dementieva said that it just a matter of luck whether you get injured or not. “We need to chance the system when you see 21 year old players having to retire and it’s a shame that Kim and Justine are not playing in LA. Our season is too long. Like the French Open is much too close to Wimbledon, you just don’t have time to adjust to grass”.

Maria Sharapova will meet Australian Alicia Molik who defeats Swiss Patty Schnyder in three sets.