Andreeva puts the tennis world on notice
Andreeva is one of only three women under 18 to have beaten the world No.1 and No.2 in the same tournament. The other two? Serena Williams and Steffi Graf.
Mirra Andreeva likes to carry a little notebook with her to court. It contains handwritten notes on the opponents the 17-year-old has faced, and she often flips through it during mid-match changeovers (TV cameras snooped in to capture a page headlined, “INDIAN WELLS Rybakina”).
Over the years, as the annals of women’s tennis turn chapters on generational prodigies, Andreeva’s name will stand out in the current era. As the youngest champion of the prestigious Indian Wells tournament since Serena Williams in 1999. As the youngest woman to win back-to-back WTA 1000 events since Martina Hingis in 1997. And as one of only three women aged under 18 to have beaten the world No.1 and No.2 in the same tournament.
The other two? Serena Williams and Steffi Graf. That’s some elite company to be in.
Andreeva was always looked at as a prodigious talent, and the Russian’s sizzling run in the Californian desert could potentially light her path to making further inroads into such elusive clubs.
When the teen turned the tables on Aryna Sabalenka 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 in the final on Sunday, she capped off a terrific week in which she took down world No.2 Iga Swiatek, Australian Open quarterfinalist Elina Svitolina, and 2022 Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina. Make that a terrific month, swinging back to Dubai where she also won and went past Swiatek and Rybakina to become the youngest WTA 1000 champion.
Sabalenka, Swiatek and Rybakina are currently the three most powerful pros on the women’s tour flaunting Grand Slam-winning pedigree, and this baby-faced giant-killer has defeated them all over the past month — two of them twice. No woman has won more matches so far this year than Andreeva. No teen has created quite a stir in recent times — perhaps with the exception of Coco Gauff, now 21 — since another Russian teen sensation turned star, Maria Sharapova.
This rip-roaring Russian, now a world No 6, is on the fast lane. And she’s loving it.
“Maybe it’s all happening a bit fast. But I like it,” Andreeva said after winning Indian Wells, often described as the fifth Grand Slam. “It’s not bad to win two tournaments in a row. If it’s happening fast, I take it.”
It was always meant to happen for her; the question was when rather than if.
The rise and riseBorn in the Russian city of Krasnoyarsk, Andreeva started playing as a six-year-old along with her elder sister Erika (also a pro, currently ranked 95). Sensing the siblings’ potential, the Andreeva family moved to the resort own of Sochi for better training facilities and then to Cannes, France, under coaches Jean-Rene Lisnard and Jean-Christophe Faurel. That’s where Andreeva developed her craft which made her the top-ranked junior and the Australian Open girls’ finalist in 2023. That season also gave the world the first signs of her potential, as she made the Round of 16 at WTA Madrid Open and then Wimbledon as a qualifier.
Those baby steps turned into giant strides with the arrival of Conchita Martinez as her coach last year. The Spanish 1994 Wimbledon champion had worked with former top 10 pros in Garbine Muguruza and Karolina Pliskova, and instantly saw a bright prospect and quick learner in Andreeva (the handwritten notes were Martinez’s idea).
Blooming in this partnership, Andreeva reached the 2024 French Open semi-finals beating Sabalenka, captured her first WTA title at Iasi in July and the 2024 Paris Olympics doubles silver. Her victory over Sabalenka at Indian Wells was only her second in six meetings, but one that is now accompanied by the belief that she can beat any player on her day.
“I would say that now I’m sure that I can try and win really big matches against big players. Before I would just come out on court and try to win as many games as possible, because I had nothing to lose,” Andreeva told WTA.
There’s also a Martinez mark on her game style, which features court movement and craft as her bigger strengths than raw power. It’s a style that often elicits comparisons with another former teen sensation — Swiss great Hingis.
“I actually watched a lot of her matches,” Andreeva had said. “I really like the way she plays.”
Trailblazer like no otherAndreeva is an anomaly at present, as the only teen ranked inside the top 100 of women’s tennis which is increasingly getting physical. Andreeva has also had slightly divergent trajectory from the recent young breakout faces. While most have burst through almost overnight on one-Slam wonder moments (think Emma Raducanu or Bianca Andreescu) before losing their sheen to the rigours of the professional tour, Andreeva has been through a few deflating downs before this heady high.
She has spoken about the junior Australian Open final defeat as being among the biggest learning lessons of her career. She broke down inconsolably during the presentation ceremony after losing the Ningbo Open final late last year on the back of some early tournament exits.
The presentation ceremony at Indian Wells would bring out Andreeva’s infectious smile, as also her unfiltered personality that adds to the charm of this star in the making shining brighter than ever.
In the winners’ on-court speech that often sees players deliver monotonous “thank you” sentences in a particular order (opponent, sponsors, crowd, and so on), Andreeva had a rather refreshing thank you reserved for the end.
“I would like to thank myself,” Andreeva said, smiling. “For fighting until the end and for always believing in me and for never quitting.”
Fast lane or not, potential Grand Slam champion or not, this young talent is certainly a breath of fresh air. “I mean, it’s nice to be me, I guess,” she said.
