Sharapova's return derailed by Kirilenko in rain-hit Melbourne

Melbourne: Maria Sharapova's belated return to the Australian Open ended swiftly yesterday when the former world No 1 was knocked out just hours after the first Grand Slam of 2010 began.

Belgian Kim Clijsters, back in Australia after missing the last two years to start a family, made a triumphant return while Dinara Safina and Svetlana Kuznetsova all registered straight-set wins.

Sharapova, making her first appearance at Melbourne Park since winning the championship two years ago, lost to fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko 7-6 3-6 6-4 on the Rod Laver Arena.

Unable to defend her title last year because of a shoulder injury, Sharapova was a shadow of the player who stormed to the 2008 title without dropping a single set, contributing to her own defeat with 66 unforced errors and 11 double faults.

"It's the first tournament of the year and I just came up against somebody that just played really good tennis," Sharapova said.

"I could be disappointed or I could just take it as it is and just go back on the court and just keep working. I choose option two."

Sharapova was the only major casualty on a day where everything else went according to script, except Melbourne's fickle weather.

Instead of the extreme heat that has left competitors soaked in sweat and gasping for air, the players were greeted by wind and rain when they arrived this time.

Matches on the outside courts were delayed then interrupted by showers while organisers closed the giant retractable roofs on the two main courts to ensure the feature matches went ahead.

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