Sharapova breezes as Murray battles through

Former Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova made short work of her second round opponent at the Rome International clay court event on Tuesday, thrashing Ekaterina Makarova 6-1, 6-1. Men's world number four Andy Murray had a very different experience as he was made to work in an error-strewn match before seeing off Belgian veteran Xavier Malisse 6-2, 2-6, 6-3.
Having said on Sunday that women's tennis had improved its strength in depth in recent years and that the old days of breezing through the first couple of rounds were long gone, Sharapova disproved her own claims. Murray was largely out of sorts in a topsy-turvy second round match that ebbed and flowed until the Scot held serve for a 4-1 lead in the final set.