Sharapova back with some financial muscle

Melbourne: The grand slam year hasn't even officially started, and yet already it feels as though a cannon filled with dollar bills, blonde hair and glitter has been fired into your face. If one thing is guaranteed to happen at the 2010 Australian Open, it is that a Russian blonde called Maria will reach the second round.

The two Marias, Sharapova and Kirilenko, both have the same nationality and hair colour. While one is a tennis player and model, the other is an athlete, a celebrity, a businesswoman and a multi-million-dollar brand, Maria Inc, that has just signed the most lucrative endorsement contract in history for a sportswoman.

So Sharapova is back at the Australian Open. The Siberian, who was already the world's highest-earning sportswoman, just got richer. She has agreed to wear Nike dresses for another eight years in exchange for up to $70 million (Dh257 million).