Maria Sharapova's first-round victory over Christina McHale at the Italian Open has secured her a spot in Wimbledon qualifying.
The 30-year-old has just returned from a 15-month doping ban and required a wildcard to play in the Eternal City, but she took full advantage to down the 24-year-old American.
The Russian ace sealed a 6-4 6-2 triumph on Monday to advance to the second round, meaning she will rise from her current ranking of 211 to inside the top 200, earning a spot in qualifying at the All England Club.
However the 2004 Wimbledon champion will have her sights on at least the semi-finals on the Rome clay, as that would guarantee a spot in the main SW19 draw.
It is still unknown if the five-time Grand Slam winner will be handed a wildcard into either qualifying or the main draw at the upcoming French Open, and the two-time Roland Garros champion will discover her fate on Tuesday.
Sharapova will play Croatian 16th seed Mirjana Lucic-Baroni in round two in Rome and could face a showdown with world number one Angelique Kerber in the third round.
Source: www.clubcall.com
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