Mitrra Andreeva was defeated in front of a fiery home crowd in the quarterfinal at
Roland Garros and acknowledged that the atmosphere contributed to her defeat.
The 2025 Indian Wells Open champion did not drop a set in the opening four rounds in Paris. She played world No. 361 and wild card Lois Boisson in the quarterfinal, hoping to replicate her run to last year's semifinal.
Despite the huge ranking difference between the women, Boisson played superbly throughout the prestigious tournament and was never going to be an easy opponent for the teenage prodigy.
However, the Frenchwoman having home advantage helped her chances. The fans have given the wild card incredible support throughout the event, helping her to upset the
WTA world No. 3 Jessica Pegula in the fourth round.
Boisson received even more vocal backing against Andreeva. At times, it became hostile, including cheering the sixth seed's double faults, shouting between first and second serve, and booing Andreeva when she questioned line call decisions.
That is a lot for an 18-year-old to handle. After losing the first set on a tiebreak, despite holding a set point, Andreeva's game plummeted, and she was in tears at one stage. Boisson prevailed 7-6, 6-3.
In a press conference after the match, Andreeva expressed disappointment with her performance and did not hide that the rowdy atmosphere on Court Philippe-Chatrier impacted her throughout the contest.
“I’m not happy with some of the points, shots, and decisions I made today on court. Obviously, with pressure from the crowd, and sometimes I also felt not very confident in some actions that I did on the court. All of this played a role."
Although a disappointing setback, Andreeva will undoubtedly learn from the experience. She will play in front of many more hostile crowds during her career, and each time provides an opportunity to become accustomed to it.
Many other great players struggled against hostile crowds when they were young. For instance, an 18-year-old Carlos Alcaraz was visibly emotional and affected by the atmosphere during a 4-6, 5-7 defeat to Frenchman Hugo Gaston at the 2021 Paris Masters.
Several great champions learned to thrive in such situations. For example, Roger Federer received overwhelming crowd support in his Grand Slam matches against Novak Djokovic, but the Serbian won their last six meetings at majors.
If players in those environments can hang on and face up to the atmosphere, sometimes the player with the crowd support can become nervous. Federer's 2019 Wimbledon final loss to Djokovic from 40-15 on serve with two championship points is a prime example.
Coco Gauff was Boisson's semifinal opponent at Roland Garros.
Although she hoped the crowd would be respectful, the 21-year-old also did not mind the spectators giving the Frenchwoman vociferous backing, which she thinks is good for the sport.
Andreeva has still been among the best players in 2025 after securing WTA 1000 titles in Dubai and Indian Wells. Winning a Grand Slam is the next step in her attempted journey to becoming one of the greatest in tennis history.