Maria Sharapova all set for return as Russian looks for pre-Wimbledon court time

Maria Sharapova is set to make her return to competitive tennis this week, sparking hopes that the Russian can play a part at Wimbledon.

The five-time Grand Slam champion has been sidelined since February with a shoulder injury, but will take her place in a strong field at WTA Mallorca.

“[My shoulder] is doing well. I took this time in order to come back to my first event and feel like I have a really good chance at it,” Sharapova said.

“Being away from the game for a few months is always challenging, because you miss a lot of things.

“But from a shoulder perspective, I’m giving it a really good chance here. Every match is going to be a really good test.”

Sharapova will be joined in Mallorca by Angelique Kerber, Anastasia Sevastova, Elise Mertens, Amanda Anisimova and Belinda Bencic, and she is due to face Viktoria Kuzmova in the first round.

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