April 15 (Bloomberg) -- PepsiCo Inc. and Maria Sharapova, a three-time Grand Slam tennis champion who’s dropped out of the top 50 because of a shoulder injury, have ended their two-year endorsement deal.

“There is no particular reason other than that the contract has ended, with both parties mutually deciding to go their own way,” Huw Gilbert, a Purchase, New York-based spokesman for the world’s second-biggest soft-drink maker, said in an interview. “We enjoyed our partnership and wish her well.”

In January 2007, Sharapova, 21, became the first tennis player to represent PepsiCo’s Gatorade sports drink and Tropicana fruit juice brands worldwide. That contract, signed after the Russian won the 2006 U.S. Open, expired at the end of last year.

Financial details of the agreement, which also consisted of Sharapova fronting a global hydration education campaign, weren’t disclosed. Sports Business Daily reported the deal to be worth close to $1 million a year at the time.

“Gatorade has a rich history of partnering with the world’s best athletes,” Pete Brace, director of communications at The Gatorade Company, said in an e-mail. “As a leading sports brand, we are consistently evaluating our portfolio of athletes and properties to ensure we have the right mix.”

Gatorade struck a deal with Serena Williams, the reigning U.S. Open and Australian Open champion, late last year to endorse its products in the U.S., Brace said. Williams joined other athletes including golfer Tiger Woods and retired basketball star Michael Jordan.

Max Eisenbud, Sharapova’s agent at IMG, wasn’t immediately available for comment.

Highest Paid

Since winning Wimbledon at the age of 17 in 2004, Sharapova has become one of the biggest draws on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour and the highest-paid female athlete in the world. She makes close to $22 million a year according to Sports Illustrated, endorsing products ranging from Tag Heuer watches to Nike sportswear and luxury goods by Tiffany & Co. During her injury- related lay-off, she became the face of U.S. shoe, handbag and accessory designer Cole Haan, a unit of Nike.

Sharapova, who took over the top spot in women’s tennis following the retirement of Justine Henin in May last year, has slipped to No. 53 after missing the Beijing Olympics, the U.S. Open and the Australian Open. She had shoulder surgery in October.

The Russian, one of the most combative players in the women’s game, hasn’t played a singles tour match since August. She told reporters after a defeat in a doubles match at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California, last month that her rehabilitation would take time and that she would no longer set a date for her singles comeback.

To contact the reporter on this story: Danielle Rossingh in London at drossingh@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: April 15, 2009 07:13 EDT