Maria Sharapova: Unlikely Win in Rome Will Propel Tennis Star at French Open

Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova will use her unlikely, come-from-behind win at the rain-delayed Italian Open final in Rome on Sunday to propel herself back into Grand Slam form for the upcoming 2012 French Open at Roland Garros.

Sharapova edged Li Na 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) on a final-set tiebreaker after trailing a set and 4-0 in the second set. Li tallied an incredible 24 unforced errors in the second set to let Sharapova, who won six straight games, back into the championship match. 

Sharapova's momentum carried into the third set where she would build a 4-1 lead before opening the door for Li, who took a 5-4 lead after taking four straight games. The narrow win gives Sharapova two straight on Rome's clay, and will give her confidence heading to Paris this May.

The French Open is the only Grand Slam event that has eluded Sharapova throughout her 11-year professional career. The 25-year-old has yet to even reach the final of the prestigious clay tournament; she lost in the semifinal to Li Na in 2011.

Sharapova's defeat of Li this weekend in Italy made a statement, but the fashion in which the World's No. 2-ranked female player topped the reigning French Open champion in Rome is even more important for her confidence. 

Sharapova has not won a Grand Slam in over three years; her last major win came at the 2008 Australian Open. Roland Garros presents Sharapova with more challenges than any other venue. It's also no surprise that the season's second major tournament, which Sharapova has struggled in, is the only one played on a clay surface.

That is why Sharapova's miraculous, hard-fought win at Sunday's Italian Open final will be so important for her in the coming matches. She needed a third and deciding set just once in five matches on Rome's red clay, a testament to her dominance and world-class form at the moment. 

She's finally won a singles title in 2012, a week after a disappointing quarterfinal-round loss to Serena Williams in Madrid. It's safe to say that Sharapova is getting comfortable in Europe, and she'll surely be a challenger to Belarus' World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka next month at the French Open.

Count on it.

Follow Patrick Clarke on Twitter for more take on Tennis.