A former victor of the Australian Open has endured a huge transformation since her tennis days
Once one of the world’s most recognisable athletes during her illustrious tennis career, Maria Sharapova has undergone a major transformation since retiring from the sport.
The 38-year-old burst onto the scene in 2004 when capturing an upset victory over Lindsay Davenport in the Wimbledon final as a 17-year-old. Her triumph at the All England Club preceded winning the Tour Finals later that year as she later became the first Russian woman to become world No. 1 in August 2005.
Four more major titles were to come for Sharapova, who won the US Open in 2006, the Australian Open in 2008 and the French Open in 2012 and 2014. Her success in Melbourne came off the back of an almost two-year run without a Grand Slam title in a tournament she entered not being the favourite.
After defeating former world No. 1 Davenport in the second round, Sharapova bested then-world No. 1 Justine Henin to put an end to the Belgian’s stunning 32-match win streak. A semi-final victory over Jelena Jankovic set up the ‘Grand Slam’ final against Ana Ivanovic which Sharapova won in straight sets.
Despite her excellence and notoriety on the court, Sharapova earned superstar status in wider society. It was in 2006 when Maxim ranked the slender beauty as ‘the hottest athlete in the world’ for four years in a row.
Her blonde locks and 6ft 2in frame made her recognisable across the globe but since her retirement from tennis in 2020, she’s opted for a new look in the next phase of her life.
Getting rid of her iconic blonde look, Sharapova has sported a brunette hairstyle for several years now, and with her attendance at the likes of Paris Fashion Week and the British Fashion Awards in recent years, she’s given her fans ample opportunity to get used to her post-playing look.
Since walking away from tennis, Sharapova has ventured into business and quite successfully so. In 2023, she was appointed on the Board of Directors for Italian fashion brand Moncler.
Alongside her role at the luxury brand, she also acts as an advisor to brands such as Naked Retail and Bright. Sharapova is an avid user of Instagram, where she boasts over 4.7million followers, and uses the platform to showcase her latest activities as well as her life as a mother.
She gave birth to her son Theodore in July 2021. With her stellar success in tennis came incredible riches. She won £31m in prize money and banked more than £230m through lucrative sponsorship and endorsements deals with the likes of Nike, Tag Heuer and Tiffany.
While her retirement from tennis has remained permanent, Sharapova did make something of a return to sport in 2024. She competed in John McEnroe’s Pickleball tournament as she teamed up with the American ace but they were defeated by Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi at Pickleball Slam 2, where they lost out on the million dollar award.
