Maris was born April 19, 1987 and is a Russian professional tennis player who as of January 6, 2014 is ranked World No. 3 by the Women's Tennis Association
Maria first got noticed in November 2000, when she won the Eddie Herr International Junior Tennis Championships in the girls' 16 division at the age of just 13.She was then given the Rising Star Award, which is awarded only to players of exceptional promise.Maria made her professional debut in 2001 on her 14th birthday on April 19, and played her first WTA tournament at the Pacific Life Open in 2002, winning a match before losing to Monica Seles. Due to restrictions on how many professional events she could play, She went to her game in junior tournaments, where she reached the finals of the girls' singles events at the Australian Open and Wimbledon in 2002. She was the youngest girl ever to reach the final of the Australian Open junior championship at 14
