Maria Sharapova is scheduled to play for the Orange County Breakers for a second and final time in 2017 Monday night when they face the San Diego Aviators in a World TeamTennis match at Breakers Stadium at Palisades Tennis Club in Newport Beach.
Sharapova, who had five stints as the No. 1 player on the Women's Tennis Association singles rankings, most recently in 2012, split two sets in the Breakers 17-14 loss to the Aviators July 16 at the Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad in the season opener for both teams.
Sharapova was playing for the first time since May 16, when a thigh injury forced her to retire from her second-round match in the Rome Open as she was leading Mirjana Lucic-Baroni 4-6, 6-3, 2-1.
Sharapova first played women's doubles, teaming with Andreja Klepac for a 5-1 victory over Darija Jurak and Shelby Rogers. Sharapova lost to Rogers, 5-3, in women's singles.
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Sharapova was suspended Jan. 26, 2016, by the International Tennis Federation for an anti-doping rule violation. She regained her eligibility to play on April 26.
Sharapova reached the semifinals of her first tournament following her suspension, the $719,000 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany, then lost in the second round of both her tournaments since then.
The Breakers won all five sets in a 25-10 victory over the Springfield Lasers Sunday at Breakers Stadium at Palisades Tennis Club.
Yanina Wickmayer opened the match with a 5-2 victory over Julia Boserup in women's singles, then teamed with Klepac for a 5-1 victory over Boserup and Anna-Lena Groenefeld.
Ken Skupski teamed with Steve Johnson for a 5-4 victory over German Benjamin Becker and Jean-Julien Rojer in the match's third set, men's doubles. Klepac and Skupski then defeated Groenefeld and Rojer, 5-1, in mixed doubles.
Johnson concluded the match with a 5-2 victory over Becker, who is not related to the German International Tennis Hall of Fame member Boris Becker.
