Seven Years Later: Maria Sharapova's Return to the Sport's Biggest Stage

Not many people, men or women, have experienced the adrenaline rush of walking out on to Centre Court Wimbledon ready to play for the most prestigious championship in all of tennis. One of the few people who has felt this rush is Maria Sharapova, who played for the Wimbledon title in 2004. At the time a 17 year-old Russian who had begun to capture the hearts of people all over the world with her stunning looks, Sharapova did the impossible when she made a magical run to the Wimbledon Final as the 13th seed. Not only did she reach the final, but Maria disposed of the tournament's top seed, Serena Williams, to capture her first Grand Slam title. This Saturday marks her return to the game's biggest stage, as she will take Centre Court in search of her second Wimbledon title.

This time around, her opponent is 21 year-old Petra Kvitova, the 8th-seed in this year's tournament. This young lefty from the Czech Republic has impressed fans from all over the world with her game. Her ability to generate power off both sides is simply stunning, and her composure in key moments is unusual for someone with her in-experience. Many people believed that Kvitova's memorable run to the Wimbledon semi-finals in 2010 was going to be her first and last hurrah at a major. She has gone on to prove all of those doubters wrong, as she has gotten consistently better since last June, cracking the top-10 in the world. Expectations for her at this year's Wimbledon were not very high, as much of the pre-tournament hype surrounded the return of Venus and Serena Williams. Quietly, the 8th seed cruised into the second week at this year's Championships. After surviving 3-set matches against both Pironkova and Azarenka in the quarters and semis, respectively, the young Czech found herself in her first Grand Slam final. The only thing that stands in her way of making this year's Wimbledon her first Grand Slam title is.....Maria Sharapova.

This final between the 5th seed and the 8th seed is bound to be full of screams, shrieks, impressive winners, and service errors. What else is there to ask for? To get to the actual preview, the underdog Kvitova matches up well against the former champion. Both generate a lot of pace from the baseline, which will make for some very entertaining rallies throughout the match. The key for Sharapova will be to avoid the double faults, which casued her semifinal match to be a lot closer than it should have been. As for Kvitova, she has to try her best to calm the nerves early in the match, simply because she has a great chance to win if her in-experience does not get in the way. As for my prediction: this Ladies's Final will be a high-energy, three-set affair that will end with Maria Sharapova bringing home her second Wimbledon Title.