VISUALLY it seemed the perfect fit. Another of those guaranteed 350 days of annual sunshine had dawned in California’s Coachella Valley and Maria Sharapova seemed to be verging on the most consistent form of her career after 18 consecutive victories in 2008. Talk was rife of her reclaiming the world No1 ranking and optimism abounded; even her father Yuri had been strolling the tournament grounds with the relaxed air of a tourist.

However, the illusion was shattered as the curse of Indian Wells, which has been so spiteful to Sharapova in the past, struck again, fellow Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova plundering her opponent’s shortcomings to register a final place against top-seeded Ana Ivanovic.

Sharapova was outplayed for much of the two hour 20 minute encounter and fell away disappointingly to a 6-3 5-7 6-2 defeat. Her form was erratic – she committed 20 unforced errors in the first set alone – and ultimately her normally dependable serve gave way to allow the second seed through.

Kuznetsova was just the opponent to capitalise. A finalist for the second successive year and US Open champion in 2004, she is bidding to win her most prestigious title since overcoming Sharapova in Miami almost two years ago. She has no doubt why she again prevailed over a player who merits infinitely more attention despite a lower ranking. “I guess I’m just fit,” said the 22-year-old from St Petersburg. “I guess it’s my strength. I train a lot, so I felt great out there in the third set. And I know who wins, rules. That is all that matters.”

If Sharapova struggled to make a physical impression, there were no such problems for Ivanovic, her greater power and durability allowing her to move through to her first final since losing to Sharapova in January’s Australian Open with a 7-6 6-3 win over her fellow Serb Jelena Jankovic that required just 86 minutes of effort.

Consequently, today’s climax to the $2.1m Pacific Life Open will be the first time since 2000 that the top two seeds will go head-to-head in the final of the biggest event the United States hosts away from the eastern seaboard. However, it is not really the final the sponsors were hoping for; a rerun of that Melbourne glamour match-up between Sharapova and Ivanovic would have been far more preferable.

Ivanovic did her job admirably, although she admitted an element of anxiety initially held her back against Jankovic, even though she had beaten her compatriot four times in five previous meetings. She also boasts a 4-1 winning record against Kuznetsova, but overconfidence will not be a factor as the 20-year-old bids to collect the $335,000 first prize that may not be the most lucrative payday in her young career, but would certainly be the most prestigious.

Emphatic defeats by Justine Henin in last year’s French Open final and Sharapova in Australia have established question marks in her ability to handle her nerves when it comes to the biggest matches. She is aware of the fact and intends to be mentally stronger against Kuznetsova.

“She’s a very powerful player, so I think it’s important to stay right there with her and not give her many chances,” said Ivanovic, who has only recently recovered from an ankle injury she suffered while practising in Doha. “I think we have little bit similar games and she likes to run around her forehand. I’m not going to say now what my tactics will be but definitely I know what I’m going to do and I’m going to look to control the points.”

Gazing up at the snow-capped Santa Rosa Mountains, Sharapova said: “I’m human. You know, I’m allowed to make a few mistakes in my life and in my career. You know, that kind of was the story today.”

This was not an errant performance to rival her 6-0 6-0 semi-final defeat by Lindsay Davenport on the same court three years ago or a demise like the three-set defeat against Vera Zvonereva a year ago that was hampered by her ongoing shoulder problems, but it was still a defeat to lament.

“I was just playing with a much slower pace than I normally play with,” she said. “I wasn’t going for my shots as I normally do, and as usual, I wasn’t seeing the ball that good. There were a couple of important points that could have changed the match, and she ended up winning them. I think from that she gained confidence and kind of steamrolled after that in the third set.”

There have been reasons for Sharapova to become enamoured with this particularly scenic part of her adopted homeland, having won here in 2006. However, more often than not since a first appearance in 2004 that saw her humbled by Anastasia Myskina 6-2 6-1, Indian Wells has seemed to highlight her shortcomings, particularly the physical ones. Yesterday she again pointed the finger at physical fatigue for her defeat.

She chose to pull out of the recent Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships, citing a cough, but has maintained a hectic jet-setting existence for the past five months and said: “I haven’t taken more than three days off since I started training for Australia. I’m playing a lot of tennis, been flying a lot. It takes a toll. You feel like you have to go out on the court and spend a lot of emotion and energy out there, and sometimes you just don’t have it for every match.”

Indian Wells Open, British Eurosport, today, 7.15pm