MELBOURNE: Tennis' reigning superstar Maria Sharapova flicked aside heir apparent Eugenie Bouchard in the Australian Open quarter-finals Tuesday, hitting peak form as the tournament progresses.
The Russian five-time Grand Slam champion, seeded second, crushed the Canadian seventh seed 6-3, 6-2 to see off the challenge from a new generation and sound a warning to rivals at Melbourne Park.
The win sets up an all-Russian final four clash on Thursday with Ekaterina Makarova, the 10th seed.
Sharapova, 27, won the Australian title in 2008 and can seize the world number one ranking off arch-rival Serena Williams if she repeats the feat this year.
She was never troubled against Bouchard, 20, the photogenic rising star who has constantly been compared to Sharapova and touted as the leading light of a group of young guns destined for Grand Slam success
"I felt pretty good from the start. I thought I had a really good start. I kept my focus throughout the whole match," the Russian said.
"I didn't feel that I had too many let downs, which is important. When I did have a few slips I was able to come out with great first serves or really powerful returns. Overall really happy with the way the match went."
Bouchard conceded an early break in her quest for big winner and never recovered, admitting: "I didn't start well and it kind of all went downhill from there."
Sharapova said she was steadily improving after surviving a major scare in the second round, when she was one point away from an early cab to Melbourne airport.
"Am I happy that I was able to lift my game after having a couple of matches where I wasn't satisfied? Yeah, absolutely," she said.
"But the toughest is what's to come. I hope that I'll be able to take that and play even better."
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