Key Biscayne, FL (SportsNetwork.com) - Maria Sharapova was an early winner Monday in the fourth round of the Sony Open.
Sharapova, seeded fourth, rallied past No. 19 seed Kirsten Flipkens 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 at Crandon Park.
Flipkens came out on fire and took the first set from Sharapova for the first time in her career.
The Belgian fell behind 4-0 in the second set before winning four of the next five games. But Sharapova held strong to take the second set, and then rolled to victory in the final set.
Sharapova, a five-time runner-up in Miami, improved to 5-0 lifetime against Flipkens. The Russian will face eighth-seeded Petra Kvitova or 12th-seeded Ana Ivanovic in the quarterfinals.
German fifth seed Angelique Kerber also needed three sets to get by 23rd- seeded Russian Ekaterina Makarova 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.
Six-time champion Serena Williams, Li Na, Agnieszka Radwanska and Venus Williams are scheduled to play later Monday.
The 2014 Miami champ will collect $787,000.
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