Sharapova seals last eight berth

Maria Sharapova was delighted to recover from a “sluggish” start to beat Daniela Hantuchova to reach the quarter-finals of the Australian Open at the Rod Laver Arena.

The 6-4 6-4 score indicated a comfortable victory for Sharapova, but it was far from easy for the Russian fourth seed, who eventually saw off Slovakian number 17 seed Hantuchova in 97 minutes courtesy of five breaks of serve to three.