Paris, June 4 : Despite tumbling to the clay and struggling with her serve, Maria Sharapova moved closer to her first French Open title by reaching the quarterfinals with a ragged 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-2 victory Monday over unseeded Klara Zakopalova of the Czech Republic.
In the third set, Sharapova occasionally clutched at or flexed her right wrist.
On a windy, rainy afternoon, when both players slipped during points, the second-seeded Sharapova finished with 12 double-faults and was broken nine times, including three when serving for the match.
But she broke the 44th-ranked Zakopalova 12 times, including the final game.
Sharapova is trying to complete a career Grand Slam at age 25. She never has made it past the semifinals at Roland Garros.
Zakopalova never before went beyond a major's second round.
