Sharapova looks forward to Olympics

Paris: Maria Sharapova struck a philosophical tone after her dreams of securing a 25th WTA title at her first Paris Open were shattered by German ninth seed Angelique Kerber on Friday.

Sharapova, who lost to Victoria Azarenka in the Australian Open final last month, struggled for consistency throughout and failed to save any of the five break points that Kerber procured over the course of her 6-4, 6-4 success.

"Of course, in every tournament you want to get to the final on Sunday," said Sharapova, who is set to rise one place to second in the WTA ranking tomorrow despite her defeat at Stade Pierre de Coubertin.

Mistakes

"You also have to be realistic. Sometimes you have a day that isn't a good day. You have to move on and learn from your mistakes. "I know I could've played better, so that makes me feel better. If I'd played really well and lost, there'd be something wrong."

Kerber made it to the last four at last year's US Open but had never previously won against a top-10 player and Sharapova praised the improvements in her game.

"She's someone that's been playing really good tennis in the last six months and she had a good run at the US Open," said the 24-year-old Russian.

"She's starting to really break through. Being a leftie obviously gives her an edge as there aren't many of them around. "She has a great game — she's aggressive, she stays low and she runs well. She has many plusses to her game."