Wimbledon: Maria Sharapova wins; Serena Williams next

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It took Maria Sharapova 1 hour and 54 minutes to beat Barbora Zahlavova Strycova of the Czech Republic Saturday, 7-5, 6-3, in a fourth-round Wimbledon match. Sharapova was never in real danger, but while she was aggressive with her ground strokes she was also sometimes sloppy -- as evidenced by 35 unforced errors to 34 winners.

On Monday the 16th-seeded Sharapova will play top-seeded and defending champion Serena Williams in a highly anticipated fourth-round match. Serena Williams leads the series 5-2 but one of her losses was in the 2004 Wimbledon finals when Sharapova made her big breakthrough at age 17, winning her first major tournament 6-1, 6-4. Sharapova hasn’t beaten Williams since the 2004 WTA Tour season-ending tournament however.

-- Diane Pucin in Wimbledon, England