Wimbledon champion and fourth seed Maria Sharapova crushed Chinese hope Li Na 6-0 6-2 on Friday to reach the fourth round of the Australian Open.


Li, 22, was playing in her first grand slam event and was outclassed by her more experienced teenage opponent.



Maria closed out the match after 50 minutes on Rod Laver Arena centre court to become the fifth Russian woman to reach the fourth round.



The 17-year-old raced through the first set in only 20 minutes, with Li loo...

On Friday evening Maria will play Na Li of China for a place in the fourth round (1/8 final). This match is the first match at Rod Laver Arena and the schedule starts at 19.30 local time (GMT +11).



Maria has never played Li before. Good luck Maria!

Interview: Maria about her second round match against Linsay Lee Waters.

QUESTION
Did she surprise you a bit, the way she held in and played?



MARIA SHARAPOVA:
Definitely. She played amazing in the first set, was moving side to side really well. I was trying to -- you know, when an opponent plays with two hands on both sides, you try to move her a bit and try to get her on the run, but she was playing shots on the run that were just too good. It seemed lik...

QUESTION
You handled a really dangerous opponent really well today, didn't you?



MARIA SHARAPOVA:
Yeah. You know, she's a very dangerous opponent, especially in a first-round match. So I knew what to expect. I played her once before last year. Very aggressive player. Attacked her serve.



You know, I just played a good, solid first-round match. You can't expect the best from yourself. But meanwhile, you know, it's good to get through.



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