Maria Sharapova advances to French Open final and No. 1 ranking Wind blew in her face, kicking up flecks of clay, and Maria Sharapova stood at the baseline, knowing she needed one more point to reach her first French Open final and return to No. 1 in the rankings. She rotated her right shoulder, the one surgically repaired 31/2 years ago, and served a fault. Gulp. Her next try found the mark: a second-serve ace at 104 mph that landed in a corner. It was a fitting way to close out a 6-3, 6-3 victory over No. 4-seeded Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic in the semifinals at Roland Garros on Thursday, a fitting way to announce that Sharapova is once again at the height of her powers and at the top of her sport. It's a long road back; it's a long process. It's a lot of days of frustration and uncertainty, not knowing if you'll ever get there, not knowing how much you want it, not knowing whether [there] would be a moment like that for you again," Sharapova said at her news conference, the WTA's glass vase signifying her No. 1 status sitting inches away. So there's definitely a lot of tough things you have to go through to get to this point. But when you get here, and you look back at the things that you did, and the work that you put in, and the toughest days that you can remember, it's all really worth it. On Saturday, the second-seeded Russian will face 21st-seeded Sara Errani of Italy for the French Open title. It's the only major tournament Sharapova hasn't won; she can become the 10th woman to complete a career Grand Slam. I was in a position a few years ago where I didn't quite know if I would ever be here again on this stage, playing professionally. And not just at that, but at a level to get to No. 1 in the world and a first Roland Garros final for me," Sharapova said. So a very special day, no doubt. Errani felt the same way. Playing in her first Grand Slam semifinal, she beat reigning U.S. Open champion Samantha Stosur of Australia, 7-5, 1-6, 6-3. "Players like Sharapova, Serena Williams - they're accustomed to making it this far," said Errani's coach, Pablo Lozano, who held his 10-month-old son while cheering in the stands. For us, every day brings a new surprise. Indeed, it's been quite a two weeks for Errani, who will play in the women's doubles final on Friday with Roberta Vinci against Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova. Entering this tournament, Errani was 0-28 against women ranked in the top 10. But she beat No. 10 Angelique Kerber in the quarterfinals, then No. 6 Stosur on Thursday - and those upsets were preceded by victories over two past French Open champions, 2008's Ana Ivanovic and 2009's Svetlanta Kuznetsova. Did she ever doubt she could beat the best? "It's not a question of believing or not believing," Errani said. I don't think about that. I just think about playing. I just think about going on court and giving my all. And whatever happens, happens. I've never thought, 'I can't beat someone in the top 10.'  Errani never made it past the third round at a major tournament until getting to the Australian Open quarterfinals in January. She attributes her surge this season to switching to a racket with a longer handle. At only 5 feet 41/2 inches, she found she couldn't counter the power that a lot of the game's elite - and taller - players, such as the 5-foot-8 Stosur, generate from the baseline. "My arms wouldn't get longer," Errani joked, "so I got a longer racket." The start of her semifinal was delayed by rain for more than an hour, so Errani listened to music and took a nap on a couch. She came out a bit edgy, losing the first two games, but quickly turned that around, even though plenty of her serves came in at about 70 mph. Unable to overwhelm foes, she beats them with tactics, finding all the right angles. She uses what she's got. She gets the most out of herself, I guess," said Stosur, whose 48 unforced errors were more than twice as many as Errani's total. Without being able to hit too many winners, she does what she does very well. Hitting winners was not a problem for Sharapova. On a wet and blustery day, she managed 15 - five more than Kvitova.