US Open: Clijsters battles past Sharapova

Maria is out of the USOpen after she lost to #4 seed Kim Clijsters of Belgium in the semis 2-6 7-6 6-3.


The Belgian was on the verge of victory against an out-of-sorts Maria when she led by a set and 6-5.



But Maria recovered from 0-40 and saved two more match points before racing through the tie-break.


Maria had not been at her best in earlier rounds and had to battle through.



She did well to stay in touch in the second set, but the end looked inevitable when she slipped 0-40 down in game 12.



The Russian was not about to throw in the towel, however, and she came up with a breathtaking drop shot among five saved match points.



She raced through the tie-break but then lost her momentum in the third.



I kind of gave it all I had in the tie-breaker," said Sharapova. "In the third, I kind of ran out of gas.



"At that point it's pretty tough because physically I still have to get a lot better and I have to play these three-setters. The points are going to go on and on and on.



"This is not something that's going to happen overnight. I'm only 18 and this is going to take time.



"My body is still growing and I'm still adjusting to my own body."