Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka entered their US Open semifinal with perfect 12-0 and 11-0 record in three-setters in 2012 respectively and their encounter went the distance, with the world No.1 Azarenka catching up with Sharapova after a 3-6 6-2 6-4 victory in two hours and 42 minutes.

Sharapova used to be 3-0 against Azarenka in three-set matches, but today it was the Belarusian who was much more confident on her serve, while her returns were out of this world. Even though the lack of tiebreaks may suggest that sets were not that long, a lot of the games were very tense, several lasting about 10 minutes, and tennis fans had their hearts full with the two power-hitters giving each other the perfect conditions to show their outstanding force and preciseness.

Five double faults didn't prevent Sharapova from winning the first set, but in the second set it was Azarenka who took charge, going up 4-1 and working her way to taking the most beautiful game of the match, the seventh game of the second set, in which Sharapova did have break points. Azarenka finished the job in the following game, even though Sharapova was 40-0 on her serve – an excellent winner, two double faults and an unforced error by Sharapova gave Azarenka a set point. Sharapova saved that first one, but succumbed on the second.

The third set lasted 74 minutes and had no breaks of serve until the very end! The length of the set was mostly due to Sharapova's struggles on her own serve, but also her determination not to give them up. Azarenka looked pretty cool and relaxed, while Sharapova seemed tense and a bit panicky, especially towards the end, truth be said, she had every reason for that. It was just a matter of time when she would not be able to save herself and that moment came in the tenth game of the deciding set.

Congratulations, Omair, for predicting the right winner of this semifinal! (photo: © Neal Trousdale)

The 2012 US Open semifinals feature three reigning Grand Slam champions (Victoria Azarenka, Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams), one reigning Grand Slam runner-up (Sara Errani), and all the three London Olympics medalists. What more can you ask for? Our contributor Omair is back in action, giving us his take on the upcoming semifinal match-ups. First up, Victoria Azarenka vs. Maria Sharapova.

For the second time this year, Azarenka and Sharapova will square off at a Grand Slam. In the Australian Open final in January, Azarenka demolished Sharapova 6-3 6-0. This time, Sharapova will try to reach her third major final of the year, while Azarenka will work for her second.

Azarenka leads the head-to-head against Sharapova by a slim margin of 5-4. They have already met three times this year, each time in the finals, with Azarenka coming out on top in two of the meetings. However, it was Sharapova who won their last encounter at Stuttgart.

Let's see their average stats for the matches played until the 2012 US Open quarterfinals.

The top-seeded Azarenka lost one set en route to the last four, while Sharapova survived three-setters in her last two matches. If you look at the stats, not much differentiates the two, but there will be a few key factors that both will need to work on. Read more »

Rain stretched it over two days, it went to three sets and at 4-4 in the last set it was still unclear whether Maria Sharapova or Marion Bartoli would have the edge and advance to the US Open semifinals. The Russian then broke the persistent Bartoli and in the next game established herself as the winner, 3-6 6-3 6-4.

On Tuesday, Bartoli started the quarterfinal on fire, building a 4-0 lead, even though in the fourth game, leading 40-0 on Sharapova's serve, a bad line call prevented Bartoli from breaking Sharapova to love immediately and allowed the Russian to come back to 40-40. Eventually, the still erratic Sharapova gave the game away by double-faulting on Bartoli's fourth break point. Soon afterwards, the match was suspended due to rain and it turned out it would resume on Wednesday. Read more »

I can't believe just two days after I wrote about how distant Maria Sharapova and her fiancé Sasha Vujacic seem lately and how, according to Sharapova's statements, the wedding seems to be a distant thing on her mind, even though they got engaged almost two years ago, we're getting the quite official information that the tennis-basketball couple is no more. Actually, they probably broke up three months ago! Everything matches – that's about the period Maria has been without her expensive engagement ring. Read more »

Lately I've been thinking about how awkwardly silent Maria Sharapova has been about her marriage and I decided to give the topic attention in hope of getting some insider/wise reader input. It's been almost two years since Masha and Sasha Vujacic got engaged and the topic of the wedding seems to be a far away subject on their minds, or they are playing such a game for the media. The question is, could they be hiding the split, postponing the worse, or they are just private and relaxed about their wedding plans?

First of all, no recent sightings of the couple have reached the media, while before, every now and then there was some story about them. Moreover, what happened to the giant engagement ring on Sharapova's left hand? According to the sharp eye of our reader Katrin, who pitched me to dig into this issue, the ring has been missing since about the start of the summer.

That's not the only strange thing surrounding this story.  Just days ago Sharapova said that the November Istanbul wedding was just a rumor:

That's not true. I'm definitely not getting married in Istanbul in November. I'm surprised anyone believed that.

However, it's suspicious that in the interview for the September 2012 issue of Hamptons magazine, Maria didn't correct the interviewer!

Hamptons: You're getting married to Sasha Vujacic, a Slovenian professional basketball player (who played for the Lakers and the Nets), on November 10 in Istanbul, Turkey. Do you see yourself one day becoming a mom? Read more »

The launch of Maria Sharapova's candy brand kicked-off on Monday and fans of sweets can finally indulge in the tennis star's latest business venture - 12 varieties of fancy candy called Sugarpova, available exclusively at certain retail outlets, for about $6 per bag. The launch took place at famed Fifth Avenue Henri Bendel. Read more »

Maria Sharapova is not defending her Cincinnati title this week, missing her second straight tournament after the Olympic silver, due to a stomach virus. However, you know the Russian always has her hands full and during the time off the tennis courts she is launching her line of candy called Sugarpova.

On her Facebook page, Sharapova gave us a glimpse of how the sweets will look and invited everyone to join her on August 20th at Henri Bendel on 5th Avenue. For those not in New York, Sharapova ensured a live stream on her official website.

Have to love those Facebook comments! One commentator hopes that the candy will make Sharapova stronger and more cheerful.

Maria next time crush those Williams sisters with your game, I hate their winning against you. Eat some chocolate and be lively, you look too cold, like your country Russia, cheer up.

Our guest blogger Omair likes to give WTA players unofficial titles on the account of their performance at big events. Notice how Serena improved from the Biggest Disappointment at Roland Garros, to Grass Empress at Wimbledon, to shortly afterwards become a Golden Empress at the Olympics.

SERENA WILLIAMS – GOLDEN EMPRESS

With her first gold medal in singles at the Olympics, Serena completed her Career Golden Slam, joining Steffi Graf and becoming only the second woman to achieve such a feat. Moreover, Serena did that in style, losing a total of 17 games in six matches. En route to the medal, Serena defeated four players who have ranked world number one at some point (Jelena Jankovic in the first round, Caroline Wozniacki in the quarterfinals, Victoria Azarenka in the semifinals and Maria Sharapova in the final). She also became the only tennis player in history to complete Career Golden Slam in both singles and doubles. With such a strong performance, Serena reinforces her title of grass empress earned during Wimbledon 2012.

MARIA SHARAPOVA, VICTORIA AZARENKA – BRIDESMAIDS

Always a bridesmaid, never a bride. Sharapova and Azarenka were both the victims of Serena at the Olympics, and have combined three wins against her in 21 matches.

Sharapova rebounded strongly from her Wimbledon disappointment, however, she lost her plot completely once in the final and managed to win just one game in the most lopsided Olympic gold medal match.

Azarenka seemed determined to be on the course to win gold, but just like at Wimbledon, it was Serena who stood in her way. Azarenka had a chance to avenge her Wimbledon loss, but went down meekly, winning just three games against Serena. Read more »