Abu Dhabi, Dec 19 (AFP/APP): Maria Sharapova insisted Thursday that she still has the “internal fire and motivation” to compete professionally, despite the lingering shoulder problem that kept her out of action for long stretches this season. The former world number one was only able to play in eight events in 2019, contesting just 15 matches in total. The Russian five-time major champion made her first on-court appearance since her US Open first round exit in August in an exhibition in Abu Dhabi on Thursday, where she fought back from a break down in each set to defeat Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic 6-4, 7-5. “Any chance that I get to come out and play competitively is a really good day because I just haven’t played a lot,” Sharapova told reporters at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship. “Definitely I’m coming out of this match happy that I was out there again and it can only get better from here.” While she wouldn’t reveal too many details about the state of her shoulder injury, she did say she “felt fine” after her clash with Tomljanovic, while keeping her expectations in check having been sidelined for nearly four months. Sharapova plans on travelling Down … Continue reading Sharapova still has ‘fire and motivation’ despite 2019 misery