Social media figures show Maria Sharapova sparks most debate when it comes to grunting

THEY'RE the players that grind our gears. Or should that be burn be ears?

Serena

THEY'RE the players that grind our gears. Or should that be burn be ears?

For many, watching them play sets off something in inside us. And that sets off a need for many to take to social media.

We're talking about grunting.

And now, one Melbourne company has taken time out to chart exactly which players spark most debate among the public on social media.

Online Circle (theonlinecircle.com), a digital media company based in Melbourne, charted social media during the first week of the Australian Open in a bid to find out the top five most-talked about grunts.

And the girls came out on top.

Semi-finalist Maria Sharapova was a clear winner, featuring in more than 1100 mentions - be it via Twitter, Facebook or other online forums.

Coming in next best in second place - but with less than half of Sharapova's numbers - was world no 1 Victoria Azarenka.

Lesser-known Bojana Jovanovski showed you don't have to be a big name to be a hit on social media, with the emerging Serbian star coming in third on the list of social media big hitters.

The top three were followed in by long-time grunters Serena and Venus Williams.

Check out the list and numbers below: