Based on their history, it looked like a little bit of a mismatch going in - Sharapova had won all four of the pair's previous meetings in straight sets, in fact losing a total of just 11 games across their last three meetings. But sometimes that can work against you - this was almost one of those times. The No.19-seeded Flipkens came out on fire, ripping huge forehands and knifing slice backhands, her mix of power and touch helping her take a set from Sharapova for the first time in her career, 6-3. And after falling behind 4-0 in the second set, the crafty Belgian won four of the next five games to get all of the breaks back - she stepped up to the serve at 4-5, a few games from a straight set victory. But Sharapova is a Career Grand Slam-holder and former World No.1 for a reason.
She tightened the screws, cut down on her unforced errors and seized the momentum right when she needed it - the No.4-seeded Russian broke at love to take the second set, 6-4, and then rolled to a 36 64 61 victory. Every time she has passed the fourth round in Miami she has made it all the way to the final. She has been to five finals here - 2005, 2006, 2011, 2012 and 2013 - but has finished runner-up every time.
Next up for Sharapova is either No.8 seed Petra Kvitova or No.12 seed Ana Ivanovic, who played later.
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