The stage is set for the much-talked-about battle of this year’s French Open. It may not be a Davis vs Goliath fight but the fourth-round clash at Roland Garros between two former world number one women players, Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova, is promising to be a blockbuster one. 

They have one of the fiercest rivalries in women’s tennis in the present era and even though it’s a lop-sided one because of an envious record of 19-2 in Serena’s favor, a slew of off-field events leading up to this match have made the clash a marquee match.

If a power-packed Serena (in her sensational catsuit) is creating ripples with her stunning comeback since giving birth to her daughter Alexis Olympia last September, a svelte Sharapova is seeking redemption after a 15-month doping ban. 

The American is eyeing her 24th Grand Slam title after valiantly winning her 23rd in last year’s Australian Open despite being pregnant while the Russian with five majors in her kitty is determined to break her jinx of not winning a single Grand Slam crown since the 2014 French Open.

The two women have played each other in 21 matches through 14 long years. In 2004, during her breakthrough year in world tennis, a 17-year-old Sharapova outclassed Serena twice. Her maiden victory over her American rival came when Sharapova stunned the-then two-time defending champion to win the first Grand Slam of her career at Wimbledon. Four months later in the final of the WTA Championships, she overpowered Williams again. 

However, since then, it’s been 18-0 for Serena as she has conceded just three sets in these 14 years and didn’t lose a single one in their last seven matches since 2013. Moreover, Sharapova bit the dust in seven of the eight matches they met in Grand Slams and lost in three Grand Slam finals till date. In fact, if it wasn’t Williams’s invincibility, Sharapova would have won more than five major titles by now.

More than their lopsided rivalries and occasional banter through the media, it’s Sharapova’s autobiography “Unstoppable: My Life So Far” that has set the tone for their red-hot battle on the red clay of Court Philippe Chatrier. Three-time French Open champions Serena has been furious after Sharapova wrote in her memoir that the 23-time major winner cried after losing against her in the 2004 Wimbledon final. The American has recently slammed the content as “100 percent hearsay.”

“I didn't expect to be reading a book about me that wasn't necessarily true,” she said after a dazzling display against 11th seed Julia Goerges at Roland Garros a couple of days back.

Incidentally, the duo may not see eye to eye with their baggage of bad blood, but on several occasions, have backed each other on different issues, apart from speaking with respect for each other’s tennis and achievements. 

Williams hailed Sharapova as “she was brave to say something,” while referring to Sharapova's “drug incident” and didn’t say anything negative about her Russian rival. 

Sharapova tested positive for meldonium that led to a 15-month ban. Ironically, it was Serena against whom Sharapova played her last match – the quarterfinals in Melbourne – before her suspension.

On the other hand, Sharapova vouched for a rule change as Williams, who was world No. 1 before giving birth to her daughter, dropped to No. 453 as the WTA considers the maternity leave as an injury break. 

“I would like to see that (rule) change,'” Sharapova said at the Italian Open last month. “Tennis is such a selfish sport but I think when there's a child in your life you lose a little bit of that, because there's something that's so much more important,” added Sharapova. “So, yeah, I definitely think that would be a nice change.”

They were born in two different parts of the world but they have many similarities. Be it their respective status as two of the highest-paid women athletes in history or their struggles during their childhood and growing up years, both Serena and Sharapova have been trailblazers. They are the darlings of stylists and fashion designers but they also had an unforgettable past.

Sharapova's parents, Yelena and Yuri, fled their hometown of Gomel in Belarus due to the Chernobyl nuclear disaster before her birth. When Sharapova was 6, her father took her to Florida leaving her mother back home because of visa restrictions and limited finances. The Williams sisters, coached by their father Richard on a dilapidated court, were raised in Compton, California – a gang war-torn city notorious for its high murder rate at that time. In fact, their half-sister, Yetunde Price, was shot dead in 2003 when they were already making big waves in world tennis.  

As Serena and Sharapova are gearing up for their 22nd encounter, an electrifying contest is on the cards for sure. “She's probably a favorite in this match,” Williams told the media after her 3rd round win. “I'm just really trying to get my bearings and trying to feel out where I am and see where I can go.”