Sharapova fights off Bouchard but can she face down hungry Halep?

On day 11 of Roland Garros we learned what Bouchard learned from Sharapova, that Halep is snapping at her elders' heels and that a bit of sunshine brings a buzz to a day. 

Simona Halep returns the ball to Andrea Petkovic during their women's semi-final match Reuters/Gonzalo Fuentes

• It’s dog eat dog. Eugénie Bouchard lost her semi-final to Maria Sharapova in three sets. Reflecting on her defeat, the 20-year-old recalled a couple of service games in which she was leading 40-love. “Maria fights for every point,” she said. “And if I don’t go for it and take my chances, good players like that will take them, if you don’t take them. That’s part of the learning experience for me.”
• Ms Bouchard feels she will become a fixture at the top level. The daily review has never been slow to criticise or indeed eulogise. So we hail Ms Bouchard for her self-possession. “Playing on a big stage in a semi-final is obviously a big moment,” she remarked after her defeat. “But I feel I handled it well. I feel like, in the future, I’ll also be able to handle it well. I’ll just keep trying to improve.”
• It’s important to get the titles while you can. A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, Maria Sharapova claimed Wimbledon. She was but 17 and anointed to reign supreme over the empire of women’s tennis. It was her destiny. But it didn’t happen. Serena Williams has been amassing grand slam titles undeterred, there’ve been others such as Venus Williams, Justine Henin and cameos from the likes of Amélie Mauresmo and Marion Bartoli. Sharapova will be favourite for the women’s title when she takes on 22-year-old Simona Halep. If the Russian 27-year-old doesn’t win, the youngsters are going to feel their time is now.
  

• A couple of big wins can do wonders. Simona Halep was ranked at 64 in the world this time last year. Now she’s in the top 10 and into her first grand slam final. She’s been the most consistent of the top seeds throughout Roland Garros reaching the final without dropping a set. If she can complete the job and beat Maria Sharapova it will be a remarkable rise. The 22-year-old said the breakthrough came when she emerged from the qualifiers to beat the fourth seed Agnieszka Radwanska at the Italian Open last year. “I thought after that match that I could play at a higher level and beat top players. I started to be more aggressive and had more confidence. I’ve had an impressive 12 months.” A French Open crown would cap that ascent rather nicely. The last time Halep faced Sharapova was last month in the final of the Madrid Open. Halep breezed through the first set before Sharapova stormed back to win the event. The women’s final will have an edge.
• A bit of sunshine makes all the difference. We’re coming to the business end of Roland Garros and those rainy days of last week seem so last week. The women’s semi-finals were played in sunshine and the clay looked resplendent. There was heat and the buzz of a grand slam tournament. And the tennis was worthy of a magnificent day.