Sharapova edges Wozniacki to reach Key Biscayne final

Key Biscayne: Second seed Maria Sharapova advanced to the Sony Ericsson Open final by beating Caroline Wozniacki 4-6 6-2 6-4 on Thursday. The Russian will play the winner of the match between Poland’s Agnieszka Radwanska and France’s Marion Bartoli, who play later on Thursday. Sharapova was ahead early but lost the first set after her serve disappeared, allowing Wozniacki to win five consecutive games and take command. But the Russian, who has lost in all three of her previous final appearances in this tournament, recovered in the second set, striking the ball with impressive power. Wozniacki stuck at her task however and with Sharapova serving for the match at 5-3 she broke, forcing two errors out of the Russian after winning a rally with a magnificent backhand cross-court winner. [caption id=“attachment_260414” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“AFP”]  [/caption] The Dane held her serve and then faced Sharapova serving for the match again. There was a controversial finish to the match when Sharapova’s serve at 40-15 was initially ruled out but the call was over-ruled by the chair umpire, who ordered the point to be replayed. Wozniacki, whose return had found the net, protested the decision but with no challenges remaining she was stuck with the verdict and Sharapova subsequently wrapped up the win with a smart volley. Reuters