Mirra Andreeva played another incredible tennis match to shock WTA's world no. 6, Ons Jabeur at the 2024 Australian Open.
The 16-year-old prodigy from Russia has been doing incredible things in her very short career. She has already achieved four Top 20 wins prior to this match, but she has never bested a Top 10 opponent.
Therefore, facing a world no. 6 in the WTA Rankings presented her with a unique opportunity to do so, and after a convincing first-round win, there was a chance that Andreeva could really upset Jabeur.
The first set was just as impressive as it could get from the 16-year-old, and the talks about an upset started getting louder and louder, as the Tunisian didn't stand a chance under a closed roof at the Rod Laver Arena.
Playing in the largest arena in the Melbourne Park didn't seem to create any pressure on the teenager, who won the opening set 6-0 after she didn't lose more than two points in any game, and lost only a total of four points on her serve and four on her return.
On top of that, she converted three out of four break points she had, while hitting seven winners and making only two unforced errors. The result was a 20-minute win and a quick 1-0 lead in the match.
Jabeur knew that she had to improve if she wanted to beat the teenager, and even though she played better tennis in the second set of the match, it was simply not enough to do anything against the Russian.
Andreeva was once again almost perfect on break points, this time converting two out of three, while saving one herself, and after only 56 minutes, she destroyed Jabeur 6-0, 6-2 to book a third-round spot at the 2024 Australian Open, awaiting the winner of the match between Kamilla Rakhimova and Diane Parry.
After the win, the youngster was clearly in a very good mood, when during an on-court interview, she compared her current self, to herself last year, when she still competed only in a juniors competition.
"I feel like I'm a bit more mature."
To what interviewer, and former WTA player, Laura Robson quickly reacted, saying: "But you're still only 16." Still, Andreeva had a quick response that sent the Rod Laver Arena laughing.
"I know, but last year I was 15."
Ons Jabeur vs Mirra Andreeva Match Stats:
| Ons Jabeur | Mirra Andreeva | |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Aces | 2 |
| 0 | Double Faults | 1 |
| 49% | First Serve % | 65% |
| 42% (8/19) | Points Won After First Serve % | 85% (22/26) |
| 40% (8/20) | Points Won After Second Serve % | 57% (8/14) |
| 0% (0/1) | Break Point Conversion | 71% (5/7) |
| 9 | Winners | 13 |
| 24 | Unforced Errors | 10 |
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