Good evening and welcome to the live commentary of the semi-final clash between Ekaterina Makarova and Maria Sharapova in the Australian Open.

Makarova will be aiming to reach the first Grand Slam final of her career as she goes against her fellow Russian this evening. The 26-year-old powered through to the last four of the competition as she defeated the number three seed Simona Halep in straight sets 6-4 6-0 in the quarter-finals. She will be hopeful of producing the same level of performance against the five-time Grand Slam winner.

Sharapova was extremely efficient in her quarter-final victory over Eugenie Bouchard as she beat the Canadian in straight sets 6-3 6-2. The 27-year-old is starting to find her best rhythm at the right time in the tournament as she looks to emulate her feat of 2008 when she won the competition. However, her fellow Russian will provide a stern test as he she is playing the best tennis of her career.

The two players have faced off against each other five times in the past, and Sharapova has managed to win them all. So that doesn't bode particularly well for Makarova today. Their last encounter came in the quarter-finals of this competition in 2013 when Sharapova claimed a straight sets victory 6-3 6-2.

The players are out on the court and are going through their final warm-ups, so we should be underway very shortly.

Here we go, Sharapova will serve first.

Eventful first game, which lasts over 10 minutes! A strong first point by Sharapova as she works Makarova around the court before coming to the net to dab a volley into the opposite side of the court. A double fault follows from the 27-year-old, while she slams a forehand into the net in the next point to really ramp up the pressure on herself. Sharapova then hands Makarova two break points as she fires a loose forehand out when going for the line.

However, she finds her form with a excellent forehand winner before a loose shot from Makarova brings about deuce. An error from Makarova looks to have bailed out her compatriot, but she rallies back with a solid forehand to the back of the court, which Maria can't return.

Neither player seems to want to win the game as the 26-year-old goes long with a backhand while the 2008 champion double faults again. More errors follow from both players, before Sharapova finds her range with a backhand winner following a long rally while she wins the game with a powerful forehand.

BREAK! Good start to her service game from Makarova as she creates an opening for a forehand winner, which she slams down the line. Sharapova then goes wide with a backhand to hand her compatriot control of the game, but a couple of loose shots from the 10th seed level the game. The 2008 champion slams her backhand into the net, but more nerves are displayed as Makarova goes long with her next strike to bring about deuce.

The players exchange errors, but Sharapova begins to display her power with a smash then backhand winner to earn a break point. Sharapova can't take the first break point, but she gets another chance as Makarova goes wide with a forehand on deuce, before the number two seed pulls out a forehand winner to take a vital lead in the set.

Much better play from Sharapova as she claims the first point of the game without much hassle. The 27-year-old shows the diversity in her play with a drop shot, which hassles Makarova who can only hit her return wide. An error from the 10th seeds hands Maria three game points, but she needs only one as she slams a forehand winner past her compatriot. A lot of pressure on Makarova now.

A calming start from Makarova as she manages to claim the first point of the game, but then she goes long with forehand to bring Sharapova level. Baseline mistakes continue from the 10th seed as she overhits her forehand to the back of the court, while her attempted backhand slice flies straight into the net to hand Sharapova two break points. Two excellent serves bail her out of those as she crashes two strikes down the 'T'. Makarova challenges correctly on a call to earn advantage on the closest of margins, but then Sharapova nets with her next shot to get the 10th seed on the board.

Two great shots from Sharapova hand her control of the game as she races into a 30-0 lead, but an error from the 2008 champion brings Makarova into the game as she crashes a forehand into the net. However, an ace and a powerful forehand stroke secure the game and an overwhelming advantage in the first set. Makarova needs to work very hard to get back into this one.

Makarova continues her habit of unforced errors as she overhits her forehand once again in this match. She responds well as she manoeuvres the number two seed around the court, which brings the error from Sharapova as she tries to hit down the line. Both players exchange excellent tennis shots in the next two points as Makarova finds a winner, but Sharapova follows suit with a forehand down the line. Raw power from Sharapova overwhelms her compatriot as she blasts a forehand across the court, but a smash from the 10th seed levels the game. A solid serve down the 'T' and an error from the 2008 champion secure an important hold from Makarova, and she desperately needed it.

BREAK! Sharapova makes an uncharacteristic error in this match as she finds the net with a loose forehand, but she hits back with a solid serve. Makarova shows fight in the game when she displays her power across the court to win a vital point, while a double fault from Maria gives her two break points. The number two seed manages to save one of those points as Makarova finds the net, but Sharapova follows suit in the next to bring the 26-year-old right back into the match.

BREAK! Sharapova goes long as she attempts to clip the baseline with her backhand, but she gets it second time around the level the game. More power from Maria hands her the lead as she strikes the ball right out of the meat of the racquet with a forehand winner down the line. The number two seed displays pinpoint accuracy with her next forehand as she clips the corner to earn two break points. The 27-year-old secures the break back with a brilliant backhand into the same corner to quell the fightback from Makarova.

SET! Makarova slumps back into making unforced errors again as she finds the net with her first forehand of the game, while her second isn't much better as she overhits when attempting to clip the baseline. Sharapova hits an accurate serve down the 'T' to bring up three set points. Another pinpoint serves proves too difficult to return as the number two seed claims the first set.

BREAK! Not the best start to the second set for Makarova as she slams a forehand into the net, but a mistake from Sharapova brings her level. However, an excellent return from the 27-year-old puts the pressure right back on Makarova as she finds the net again. Two further unforced errors from the number 10 seed hand Sharapova the game.

Sharapova finds the net with her forehand at the start of her service game, but she manages to rally quickly to take the lead as she displays her power to force to miscues from her compatriot. An excellent forehand from the 27-year-old hands her two game points, but she throws one of those away due to a double fault. The number two seed claims the game as Makarova goes for the line and misses.

BREAK! Better tennis from Makarova as she wins the first point of the game with a solid serve, but Sharapova battles back with a strong forehand which the 10th seed can't return. Makarova's error-laden performance continues as she goes long with her forehand again, but Sharapova hands her life with a loose shot into the net. However, the 26-year-old gives her opponent a gift with another loose shot and the 2008 champion seizes her opportunity to break with a vicious backhand into the corner. Sharapova claims her second break of the second, which could be enough to secure the victory.

Makarova shows the quality of her forehand with a lovely strike down the line to take a 15-0 lead in the game before a double fault from Sharapova gives her a sniff of a break back. A couple of loose shots from the 26-year-old and the game is back to 30-30. Makarova is unlucky as her backhand clips the top of the net but instead of dropping over onto Sharapova's side it falls on her side of the net, and the number two seed claims the game with an ace. It's looking like being all over for Makarova.

Good tennis from Makarova as she forces the mistake from Sharapova to claim the first point of the game. She follows that up with an excellent serve and a winner with a forehand to the opposite side of the court, while Sharapova hands her three game points with a strike into the net. The 27-year-old doesn't make it easy for her compatriot as she smashes a forehand winner into the corner and forces a miscue with a strike down the line, but an attempted winner from Sharapova is wide which give Makarova her first game in the second set.

Sheer power from Sharapova as she bludgeons a forehand across the court to secure the a 15-0 lead, but Makarova matches her stroke for stroke on the second point to level the game. The 2008 champion double faults twice in a row to gift two break points to Makarova, who misses by centimetres on an attempted forehand winner down the line to cost herself one, while Sharapova brings about deuce with an ace. The 10th seed misses twice in a row with forehands down the line as Sharapova claims the hold and will have a chance to break for the match.

Sharapova shows the difference in quality between the players as she nails her forehand on the line, but Makarova earns a point back as the 2008 champion finds the net. The 26-year-old delivers a forehand winner of her own down the line, but Sharapova returns the favour in the next point to level the scores. Makarova staves off the inevitable for the time being as the number two seed makes two errors to hand her the game.

GAME, SET, MATCH! Sharapova starts with a mistake, but comes roaring back showing her power across the court to take the next two points. An ace down the middle brings up two match points, and the number two seed secures her place in the final as Makarova is long with her return, which could be the story of the match.

Maria Sharapova eases her way into the Australian Open final as he defeats her compatriot Ekaterina Makarova in straight sets. The number two seed wasn't really challenged today as Makarova made far too many mistakes to have a realistic chance of being competitive especially on her forehand, which was far more miss than hit. The 27-year-old will feel that she can improve the level of her game going into the final, where she will compete for the first time since 2012, facing either Serena Williams or Madison Keys.

Thanks for joining our commentary of this match. Next up is the second semi-final of the day between Americans Serena Williams and Madison Keys.