Sharapova seeks redemption on Roland Garros clay

PARIS, May 24 (Reuters): When Maria Sharapova last played the French Open tennis grand slam in 2015, she did so as defending champion.

Denied a wildcard by Roland Garros organisers last year on her return from a 15-month doping ban, the Russian was dogged by injury and controversy as she tried to get her career back on track.

Now 31, it would have been understandable had the five-times grand slam winner hung up her rackets to focus on her ever expanding business empire.

Not Sharapova, one of the game's toughest competitors.

"That's why I still continue to do this, because I have that passion of figuring things out and getting it done, whether it's a tough day, or whether it's a great day," Sharapova said in a phone interview earlier this year. Although Sharapova was the world's top-paid female athlete for more than a decade and has earned close to $300 million on and off the court according to FORBES, nothing comes close to competing for the sport's biggest prizes.