AP Blog: Sharapova Goes Bananas on Media

Maria Sharapova of Russia reacts after winning the women's singles championship over Justin Henin-Hardenne of Belgium at the US Open tennis tournament in New York, Saturday, Sept. 9, 2006 (AP Photo/Osamu Honda) (Osamu Honda - AP)

He'll yell encouragement or clap or tap a fist to his chest after key points. Nothing another parent _ or coach _ wouldn't do.

But Yuri's been drawing plenty of attention at the U.S. Open for all sorts of other signals he's been making. During Sharapova's quarterfinal victory, he pulled out a banana from his bag and held it up. After that not-so-subtle display, his daughter dutifully unpeeled a banana and chomped on it during a changeover.

When Sharapova broke Amelie Mauresmo to open the third set of their semifinal, Dad held a cup up. Toasting his kid's success? Well, maybe, but a few seconds later, Sharapova was taking a sip on the sideline.

A few minutes earlier, after the second set ended, Sharapova left the court for a bathroom break. Didn't notice the signal for that.

_AP Sports Writer Howard Fendrich

___

While Maria Sharapova was posting a bookend pair of 6-0 sets against Amelie Mauresmo, another game of love was going on in a corporate box.

Midway through the match, Heidi Klum and Seal stood up and locked lips for a full minute. Maybe longer. And because their Open seats were out in the open, so to speak, a lot of people noticed.

Dozens of fans turned around to catch a glimpse of the glamour couple, and were still looking _ and giggling _ when Sharapova and Mauresmo returned from their break. During the next few changeovers, bunches of people kept spinning in their seats to see whether the pregnant "Project Runway" star and singer would put on another show.

No more love matches, but Seal did hold up their nearly 1-year-old son and jiggle him, to the boy's delight.

After a while, a traffic jam formed in the aisle in front of their box. Politely and efficiently, a security guard watching out for them kept things moving.

_AP Sports Writer Ben Walker