"This is not a sprint, it's a marathon"- When Maria Sharapova commented on squandering three match points against Serena Williams

Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova had one of the most one-sided rivalries in tennis, with the American getting the better of the Russian on all but two occasions. A few of the matches between the two have been very tightly-contested, notably their semifinal at the 2005 Australian Open.

Serena Williams entered the tournament as the seventh seed and reached the final four after beating second seed Amelie Mauresmo in the quarterfinals. Here, she was up against fourth seed Maria Sharapova, who ousted fifth seed Svetlana Kuznetsova 4-6, 6-2, 6-2 in her previous match.

The Russian won the opening set 6-2 but Williams took the next two sets 7-5, 8-6 to book her place in the final. Sharapova had three match points during the fixture but was unable to cash in on any of them.

The then-17-year-old was asked what she thought of not converting either of her match points during her post-match press conference. Sharapova responded by stating that she cursed herself on the slip-up and claimed that the match was like a marathon and not a sprint.

"'Darn it.' You know, this is not a sprint, it's a marathon. So I'm just riding along. I mean, of course I'm sad, and obviously it's a tough one lose. But I've got a long way ahead of me," Sharapova said.

Serena Williams faced top seed Lindsay Davenport in the final and beat her 2-6, 6-3, 6-0 to win her second Australian Open title.

Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams locked horns in nine Grand Slam matches

Sharapova and Williams after their match at the 2019 US Open

Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova locked horns on 22 occasions, with nine of their matches coming in Grand Slams.

The first Major encounter between the two came in the 2004 Wimbledon final, which the Russian won 6-4, 6-1 to become the third-youngest female champion at the grass-court Major. This was the only time she would win a Grand Slam fixture against Williams.

Their second meeting in a Major final came at the 2007 Australian Open, which the American won 6-1, 6-2. The two locked horns in another two Grand Slam title clashes at the 2013 French Open and the 2015 Australian Open, with Williams winning both matches in straight sets.

The last Major encounter between Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova came in the first round of the 2019 US Open, which the American won 6-1, 6-1. Williams eventually went on to reach the final of the tournament before losing to Bianca Andreescu.