I was helpless against Serena,says Sharapova

The French Open champion was never given a sniff by Serena,who at one stage late in the first set had served more aces than Sharapova8217;s total points tally.

It was a humbling experience for Sharapova,who said: 8220;Look,she8217;s playing incredibly confident tennis. After winning Wimbledon,you8217;ve seen her level progress so much over this tournament.

8220;With every match she8217;s played,she8217;s playing better,hitting harder,so much power on the ball.

8220;Even against the wind today,her shots were very powerful. She8217;s done an incredible job of keeping that up.

8220;She wasn8217;t making many mistakes,not giving me many opportunities. She served extremely well and returned well. She was just too quick and too powerful today.8221;

Sharapova,25,conceded she was disappointed to have underachieved on such a big occasion.

8220;Obviously there8217;s things that I could have done different,8221; she said. 8220;There are always things that you feel like you can do better.

8220;If I sat here and said there8217;s nothing that I could do better,that wouldn8217;t be so motivating to go back on the court and keep working.

8220;So absolutely there are things here and there that I,for sure,could have done better.8221;

Although she was frustrared to miss out on a first gold medal,Sharapova was still pleased to leave London with silver in her debut Games.

8220;It means a lot. This is my first Olympic experience,8221; she said.

8220;This is probably one of the toughest events,playing six matches in the span of eight days against tough competition.

8220;It8217;s such a unique experience for all of us. For me to be a first Olympian and to leave with a silver is an amazing accomplishment.

8220;Obviously it8217;s always disappointing to lose in the finals,but it8217;s great to get a medal,that8217;s for sure.8221;