Mirra Andreeva takes out famous tennis players and rushes to the top of the WTA rankings.
Russian tennis player Mirra Andreeva is having a phenomenal season. The girl with Siberian roots, who turns 16 this week, has already shown her abilities in ITF tournaments.
Now it’s time for the women’s professional tour, and here Mirra also managed to make herself known.
First victory
Andreeva received a special invitation to the WTA 1000 tournament in Madrid. The draw, as it might seem, was too harsh for the girl – in the first round she went to Leila Fernandez, who already has a US Open final in her career. In all cases, the Canadian was the favorite.
But Andreeva, apparently, forgot to say this. Mirra took the lead 3:0, then slowed down a bit, but still took her own – 6:3. In the second set, she could even complete the rout, but with a score of 5: 1, she allowed her opponent to return to the game and take three games. However, the comeback did not work – 6:3, 6:4 in favor of Mirra and her first victory in WTA tournaments.
mini miracle
This success alone has become sensational. But the young native of Krasnoyarsk continued to amaze. In the second round, she got the Brazilian Beatriz Haddad-Maya – by the way, the 14th racket of the world!
As in the case of Fernandez, Andreeva did not look at either the regalia or the places in the ranking. True, I had to spend much more energy: the first set ended in a tie-break, where Mirra performed a small miracle. Losing 3:6, she pulled out five draws in a row and took the game – 7:6 (8:6). In the second set, there was no need for heroic deeds – confident 6:3 and a pass to the third round of Madrid.
Fantasy, nothing else!
“How do they know me?”
Of course, the victories of the young tennis player could not go unnoticed. Even legends speak enthusiastically about the girl. Davis Cup finalist Andrei Chesnokov, for example, believes that the third round is not the limit for Mirra.
– A magnificent victory for Andreeva! She caught incredible drive and confidence. Further more! – quotes Chesnokov “Championship”.
Olympic champion, ex-first racket of the world Yevgeny Kafelnikov is also confident in Andreeva’s bright future.
– This is a real sensation! Crazy result. At the age of 15, beating tennis players of this level is worth a lot. These two victories already say a lot, – Kafelnikov told the “Championship”.
Mirra herself is just getting used to the attention of the public.
— This is my second WTA tournament. Here I see Andy Murray, Daniil Medvedev and other tennis players. They greet me, and I think: “Wow, how do they know me?”, – quotes the words of Andreeva, the press service of the WTA.
Cooler than Sharapova
Mirra is already being compared with Maria Sharapova, perhaps the most famous Russian tennis player in the world. Of course, Maria Mirra’s achievements are still far away, but in some moments the young Russian woman has already surpassed her eminent compatriot.
Having overcome Haddad-Maia, Andreeva became only the seventh tennis player in the 21st century and the first Russian woman to beat a top-20 opponent at the age of 15. Previously, such a trick was pulled by Frenchwoman Tatyana Golovin, Czech Nicole Vaidishova, tennis player from Bulgaria Cecil Karatancheva, American Catherine Bellis, Michelle Larcher de Britou (Portugal) and another athlete from the USA Corey Gauff.
At 15, Mirra already holds six ITF senior titles – two in Spain, two in Switzerland and one each in Israel and Turkey. At the same age, Maria Sharapova won only three times – in 2002 she conquered tournaments in Japan, Canada and the USA.
By the way, Sharapova’s first exit to the third round of the WTA tournament happened only the fourth time – in June 2003 she was able to reach the semi-finals in Birmingham. Andreeva beat two rivals in one place from the second time. And, judging by her mood, she definitely does not intend to stop.
