Maria Sharapova has reached the final of the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, Florida with a hard-fought three-set victory over Caroline Wozniacki.

Sharapova made an unusually strong start to the match as she broke Wozniacki twice on her way to a 4-1 lead.

Despite the good opening, the world number two's dominance was only temporary as she lost her next three service games in a nightmare spell as Wozniacki claimed the set 6-4.

Although she endured a disappointing end to the previous set, the Russian again broke Wozniacki twice at the start of the second.

However, this time she was able to hold firm as she took the set 6-2 to level the match.

Both players gave little away at the beginning of the deciding set, but Sharapova found two crucial breaks as she established a 5-2 advantage.

The world number six broke back to put the pressure on Sharapova, but the three-time Grand Slam winner held on to give herself a match point.

There was controversy surrounding the winner as Sharapova's serve was initially called long.

Umpire Kader Nouni overruled the call, which angered Wozniacki, before the Russian clinched the set 6-4.

Wozniacki could now be in trouble with the authorities after she failed to shake Nouni's hand after the match.