Mirra Andreeva, 17, overturned the world number one Aryna Sabalenka 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 Sunday to win her second WTA 1000 title in Indian Wells. Andreeva, who became the youngest player last month to win a level 1000 Elite crown with his triumph in Dubai, ended a frustrating race against the Belarus to ensure that she will reach a sixth career record in the world on Monday. Andreeva rocked her first misfortunes and broke Sabalenka three times in the third by pushing her record from 2025 to 19-3 – the most victories of any woman from the WTA tour.
“I want to thank myself for struggling until the end,” said Andreeva. “I was running like a rabbit today because Aryna was sending bullets and it was really difficult to follow.”
In a Momentum Swing change match, Andreeva was in full control at the end, giving himself a match point on the Sabalenka service with a defensive lob which forced a lack of number one and won the victory with a winner of the forehand.
“The match point, I really tried to put the return, no matter how,” she told Tennis Channel. “Then, I just saw the ball and I decided that I could go there.
“And I did it,” added Andreeva, who sank on his knees to celebrate after his winner landed.
Andreeva won his first hard court victory against Sabalenka, who had already beaten her twice this year in Brisbane and Australian Open.
Sabalenka had penetrated the final without dropping a set, but it was another disappointment for the Bélarus, which was amazed by Madison Keys during the final in Melbourne to see his candidacy for a third title of Successive Successive Witted.
Unlike Melbourne where she played “like a joke,” said Sabalenka, this time, she let her emotions take over her.
“Honestly, I was against me,” she said. “I made a lot of uns forked errors on important points, and I let her play a little better … I was too annoyed with myself, because I think it should not be the way I finished and I was just upset with myself.
“I should have thrown this assault on this side instead of being too hard with myself.”
Andreeva had Sabalenka under pressure early, and the young person’s frustration was obvious because she was unable to convert four break points in the third match.
Sabalenka took full advantage of it, breaking the Russian to love a 3-1 lead and keeping your foot firmly on the accelerator from there.
Bubbling anger
Sabalenka supported its power from the basic line with confident forays with the net, breaking Andreeva to take the opening set in 37 minutes.
“Anger was bubbling in me, because I had a lot of opportunities that I had not converted,” said Andreeva, who wasted three other breaks to open the second set.
She finally took a foothold with a break for 2-1 – leaping on a second service in Sabalenka to end a series of 18 -chances of missed breakage point against the Bélarus this year.
“I was so desperate to win at least one match on her service … Every time she was used, I just tried to win one more match, then one more match,” said Andreeva. “In one way or another, I am somehow brought back and returned and we entered the third set like that.”
Andreeva saved a pair of breaking points to repel her advance at 4-2, his winners climbed with his confidence.
After missing a chance to take the set on the service of Sabalenka, Andreeva sealed the set with his first love game game, with a pair of ace to close it.
The Russian maintained her momentum as she broke Sabalenka to like to open the third.
Sabalenka quickly broke up, but it turned out to just a speedbump while Andeva was broken again for 2-1 and did not face another breaking point.
(This story has not been published by NDTV staff and is automatically generated from a unionized flow.)
Subjects mentioned in this article
