MADRID, May 12 (Xinhua) -- Serena Williams lived up to her billing as top seed in the women's competition as she swept aside number two seed Maria Sharapova in straight sets 6-1, 6-4 to retain the title she won last year.
Williams, who has had her ups and downs in Madrid, especially a strange second set where she failed to take a game in her three-set quarter-final win over Spain's Anabel Medina-Garrigues, had said she needed to eliminate unforced errors from her game.
However, after having beaten Sharapova in three sets in Miami at the end of March, and with 12 wins and just 2 defeats against the Russian, she was favorite to retain her Madrid title and didn't disappoint on the way to her 50th career title.
She was helped on her way to her first win on red clay since 2002 by the fact that Sharapova never looked comfortable on her serve, committing five double faults in her first three service games, allowing Williams to break her first two serves.
The Russian showed a surprising lack of confidence, despite her recent excellent form on the surface where she has won in her last 7 final appearances.
That hesitancy allowed Williams to gain in confidence and look for her shots and the American hit some powerful winning drives before sealing the set with a hanging return.
Sharapova rallied at the start of the second set and broke Williams' serve, while holding her first two service games to move 3-1 ahead, but another double fault allowed Williams to break back and level the set and from that point there was no looking back as another Sharapova double fault and an over-hit return in the final game helped Williams to victory.
Williams celebrated by being lifted into the air by the ballboys on the main court in Madrid's Caja Magica, where the event was held.