Tennis: Venus Finally Manages to Shut the Door on Sanguine Sharapova

There is a fine film called The Game starring Michael Douglas and it is shorter than the third game of the second set of yesterday's fourth-round match between Maria Sharapova and Venus Williams on Center Court.

OK, that included a rain break in the middle which lasted almost two hours but the game in question lasted 22 minutes, there were 13 deuces and seven break-points. Suddenly, for those who witnessed the epic, the sodden trek through these two Wimbledon weeks felt worthwhile.

Williams was inspired and Sharapova, her right fist clenched after every winning point, was immense. When the Russian clung on to her service to move 2-1 ahead in that second set it felt like a turning point. It was no such thing.

Sharapova, the champion of 2004 and the No2 seed, was unable to cope with the more refined movement of her opponent, or the superiority of Williams' serving.

In that game, though, and in the next three which took the score to 3-3, we had some rousing, screeching toe-to-toe tennis which might have taken the roof off the place if the builders had not already done the job.

These courts have been deluged in the past few days but the tournament has been arid in terms of stirring contests. Here, though, was one that made the blood race, even though Williams' eventual 6-1, 6-3 victory looked relatively straightforward.

She had succeeded in turning the crowd against her before a ball had been struck by going off for a five-minute comfort break after the knock-up. Sharapova looked put out but afterwards denied that she had been distracted.

This was the last of the fourth-round matches - the bottom half of the draw is dragging its feet with women as well as the men - and the opening rounds had suggested that the Russsian was in better condition, despite a shoulder injury.

She had come through her first three matches without dropping a set. Williams, though, had won two of hers by 7-5 in the third. With only one tournament victory all year this has been a barren spell for the three-times Wimbledon champion.

Sharapova's chances of revenge - Venus had ended her Wimbledon reign in 2005 - looked good. But these are troubling times for her. Maybe it is time she considered taking on a coach - her father has guided her so far but she needs to move on. Her defeat in the French Open - where she described her movement as that of "a cow on ice" - was disappointing. She looked one-dimensional with no plan B there, and it was much the same here.

She had difficulties with her service and appeared dazzled when she threw her high toss into windy sunshine - fancy having problems with the sun at this Wimbledon. Occasionally, she tossed the ball behind herself and had to perform a little skip to get into the right position. Williams, meanwhile, sent down Exocets and Sharapova was almost knocked over by one timed at 124 mph.

They had played each other four times before, with the Russian winning three times. But Williams had won their only previous meeting on grass, that semi-final here two years ago. So her 23rd seeding here was always taken with a pinch of sawdust.

Sharapova must feel fed up with being beaten up by a Williams, for Serena had knocked her out of this year's Australian Open in straight sets.

They are very close, these astonishing and slightly weird sisters, who yesterday withdrew from the doubles. When Venus was asked whether Serena had shown gamesmanship in Monday's victory over Daniela Hantuchova she was clearly angered. "Serena has always proved to be the ultimate sports-person," she said. "I think everyone in here knows that. Anyone who would suggest that is clearly ignorant so I'm definitely offended."

As for her own performance, she added: "I think I played solid today. My serve was definitely a weapon and my return was very good. Sometimes I made something happen. I have not played this well since winning in Memphis in February."

Sharapova was philosophical. "I didn't really feel comfortable in the first set but you really can't be surprised because you know what she's capable of. She can produce great tennis. That's what has won her so many grand slams.

"But she hasn't been playing the best tennis here. I watched some of her matches and she wasn't nearly as good as she was today. But I'm 20, I've won two grand slams and I've been No1 in the world. I've got plenty more years to win matches." To win the big ones, though, she might need some extra help.