At the age of 16, Mirra Andreeva has her targets set. She desires to play till she wins no less than 25 Majors.
Russia’s Andreeva is the most recent teenage star in girls’s tennis. She is the youngest participant to succeed in the fourth spherical at Wimbledon since Coco Gauff, then 15, made the spherical of 16 at SW19 4 years in the past. Like the American, Andreeva too started her marketing campaign from the qualifying spherical. But this isn’t the place Andreeva’s story has begun.
Andreeva, who was born within the Russian city of Krasnoyarsk however stays in France’s Cannes, made her Tour-level debut on the WTA250 occasion in Monastir, Tunisia, final yr as a wildcard the place she misplaced 3-6, 7-6(4), 3-6 to compatriot Anastasia Potapova within the opening spherical.
In 2023, she reached the ultimate of the junior Australian Open, taking place to a different compatriot Alina Korneeva 7-6(2), 4-6, 5-7 in a 3 hour and 18 minutes lengthy duel. The loss left Andreeva in tears. Korneeva mentioned, “I want to congratulate Mirra with this amazing week, amazing battle and it’s not our last battle, we will have a lot of good matches.”
While each Andreeva and Korneeva performed senior occasions on the ITF circuit submit Australia, the previous had one other shot at Tour-level tennis when she acquired a wildcard for the Madrid Masters. This is the place she confirmed her true potential.
Andreeva knocked out 2021 US Open finalist Leylah Fernandez in straight units within the opening spherical. Beatriz Haddad Maia and Magda Linette, two gamers who’re Grand Slam semifinalists, too went right down to the 15-year-old in the identical method.
“I’m not really surprised with my level, because I know the way I can play on the court. But, of course, I didn’t expect to be here and go this far,” mentioned the Russian after beating Linette on her sixteenth birthday.
Reigning Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka lastly stopped the junior Australian Open finalist’s dream run within the fourth spherical however, by then, the assertion had been made — Andreeva had crushed three Top-40 gamers in per week and grow to be the youngest participant ever to succeed in the final 16 of a WTA1000 occasion.
“Mirra, she’s super young and has a big future for her. I remember when I was here as a 15-year-old, she has a lot to look forward to.”Coco Gauff after beating Andreeva within the French Open
Therefore, it wasn’t actually a shock when Andreeva entered the senior French Open at Roland-Garros this yr and cruised via the qualifying spherical. Fellow-teen Gauff, the 2022 runner-up, ended the Russian’s run on the clay Major within the third spherical however not earlier than dropping the primary set courtesy Andreeva’s explosive energy from the baseline.
“Mirra, she’s super young and has a big future for her. I remember when I was here as a 15-year-old, she has a lot to look forward to,” mentioned the American after the victory.
However, Andreeva’s efficiency at Wimbledon has shocked many, and for the correct causes. The Russian has by no means performed on grass. According to the event web site, in her first apply session at Roehampton, Andreeva fell thrice as she tried to know the bounce and the motion. Yet, she dropped a complete of seven video games in her first two matches within the qualifying spherical earlier than beating Tamara Korpatsch 7-5, 5-7, 6-2 to make it to the primary draw for the second Major in a row.
Since then, she has crushed World No. 65 Xiyu Wang, 2021 French Open champion Krejcikova (the Tenth-seeded Czech retired whereas trailing 4-6, 0-3) and Potapova, her first opponent on Tour. She was up by a set and a break in opposition to Madison Keys earlier than the Twenty fifth-seeded American, who reached the 2017 US Open closing, got here again to win 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-2. Victory over Keys would have made her the youngest quarterfinalist on the grass Major since Anna Kournikova in 1997 however the stress could have ultimately received to her as she broke down in tears in the direction of the tip of the match and likewise acquired a point-penalty for racquet abuse.
More on Andreeva’s on-court adventures shall be accessible within the second instalment of Break Point, the Netflix sequence on the life {of professional} tennis gamers.
“They (Netflix crew) are following me. They’re actually somewhere here, I guess. I don’t know. They just follow me. They’re super nice people. So far I didn’t notice something bad in them. They’re super nice,” mentioned the Russian in her press convention after the match in opposition to Krejcikova.
Off the courtroom, Andreeva is rather like any teenager. She hates chemistry, typically skips her homework for her on-line programs and loves to look at some TV sequence when doable.
‘Murray is amazing’
In her interviews, the Russian has additionally talked about on a number of events about her admiration for three-time Major winner and former World No. 1 Andy Murray. In an interview with the Tennis Channel in the course of the Madrid Masters, she mentioned, “When you’re here and have lunch with all these stars, you see Andy Murray… you see his face and he’s so beautiful in life. He is so amazing.”
Murray, who is thought for his sense of humour on social media, tweeted in response to that interview clip, saying, “Imagine how good she’s going to be when she gets her eyes fixed.”
Recently, at Wimbledon, Andreeva noticed Murray however was too shy to speak to him. “When I see him, I try to leave the facility super quick just to not to talk to him because I’m super shy,” quipped the Russian.
In the present-day situation, it’s not that frequent to have teenage sensations on the WTA Tour and that’s the reason, every time somebody’s title does come up, the highlight is instantly on her. Case in level — Emma Raducanu on the 2021 US Open.
Players like Jennifer Capriati, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis, Steffi Graf, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, Gabriela Sabatini and plenty of others dominated the tennis world of their teenagers within the Nineteen Eighties and Nineteen Nineties. Graf performed her first Grand Slam predominant draw match on the French Open when she was simply 13 years outdated.
However, going full tilt so early of their careers additionally led to burning out and most of them couldn’t play singles past the age of 30 and retired.
Age eligibility rule
In 1994, the WTA launched the age eligibility rule (AER) in line with which gamers aged 14 to 17 can not play your entire schedule, which adults can. A participant aged 14 can play in a most of eight skilled occasions. The quantity is 10 for age 15, 12 for age 16 and 16 for age 17 with 4 further tournaments allowed based mostly on benefit.
As WTA mentions on its web site, “Each player is required to complete a physical examination, complete the minimum educational requirements of her country, and participate in related training and educational activities that promote her health, safety and career longevity.”
It continues to be early days for Andreeva however the Russian is already as much as sixty fourth within the reside WTA Rankings. However, with the AER in place, it is going to be a gradual course of for her to maneuver to increased stage tournaments in accordance along with her age.