Mirra Andreeva Compares Herself to Aryna Sabalenka to Explain Why She Can’t Call Herself ‘One of the Best’

Mirra Andreeva will be facing Hailey Baptiste, who knocked out Aryna Sabalenka in the quarterfinals.

Mirra Andreeva Compares Herself to Aryna Sabalenka to Explain Why She Can’t Call Herself ‘One of the Best’

Aryna Sabalenka and Mirra Andreeva (image via Instagram @wta)

In Short
  • Mirra Andreeva reached her first Madrid Open semifinal after defeating Leylah Fernandez.
  • She compared her status to Aryna Sabalenka, stating it's too early to consider herself among the best.
  • Andreeva aims to keep expectations low to maintain confidence and play aggressively.

Mirra Andreeva is all set to play her career’s first Madrid Open semifinal. In her third consecutive quarterfinal in the Spanish capital, Andreeva downed Leylah Fernandez to reach the first semifinal of a WTA 1000 tournament this season.

Andreeva is chasing her third WTA 1000 title. Last year, she won two back-to-back trophies at this level by defeating Clara Tauson in the Dubai Tennis Championships and Aryna Sabalenka in the Indian Wells final. After her latest win, Andreeva, when asked by BB Tennis whether she considers herself one of the best on the tour right now, compared herself to Sabalenka.

Probably to feel like one of the best tennis players, maybe you need to be like Aryna, because it seems to me that now she dominates and leads the tour. We can look at it by titles, points, and how much time she spent as number one. It’s probably a bit early to say that, I think, but everything is ahead, I hope.

Andreeva has already won two titles this year. She beat Victoria Mboko in the Adelaide International final and later went past Anastasia Potapova in the Linz Open final.

Sabalenka, on the other hand, lost a tournament for the first time without reaching the final this year. In the ongoing event, Hailey Baptiste came from a set down and saved six championship points to eliminate the defending champion, who was also chasing her fourth title in the tournament.

This year, she lifted titles at the Brisbane International, Indian Wells, and the Miami Open by beating Marta Kostyuk, Elena Rybakina, and Coco Gauff, respectively. Her hope of a third Australian Open crown was dashed by Rybakina in the final, following which, she missed the Qatar Open and the Dubai Tennis Championships, the WTA 1000 events of the Middle East Swing.

Mirra Andreeva has learned from the past without dwelling on it much

Mirra Andreeva wants to keep the pressure and expectations off her shoulders because that’s when she feels confident and plays her game. She has learned from last year’s performances what she needs to do to win titles.

Mirra Andreeva
Mirra Andreeva (Image via X, The Tennis Letter)

Last year, I thought a lot about that winning streak, and also this year, but it’s not easy. When you have a lot of confidence, you don’t feel as much pressure and just play your aggressive tennis throughout the match. That’s what happened to me when I won those tournaments. Then comes a bit of pressure and expectations, and you no longer feel as secure. It takes time to regain that confidence. I try not to dwell too much on it, because those were incredible results, but they are in the past.

Mirra Andreeva told reporters

Before arriving in Madrid, Andreeva suffered a straight-set defeat at the hands of eventual champion Elena Rybakina in the semifinals of the Stuttgart Open. In Madrid last year, her campaign was ended by eventual runner-up Coco Gauff in the quarterfinals.

Andreeva will next be locking horns with Hailey Baptiste in the last four. The 19-year-old, who celebrated her birthday after her quarterfinal win, defeated the American ace in their lone meeting back in 2025 in the third round of Wimbledon.

Baptiste will be playing a WTA 1000 semifinal for the first time. Before this tournament, her best performance at this level was in this year’s Miami Open, where she reached the quarterfinals and lost to eventual champion Aryna Sabalenka.

Baptiste is chasing her career’s first tour-level title. She has reached her career-best No.25th ranking in the live rankings. If she defeats the teenager, she will reach the 18th spot in the live rankings.

Also read: Mirra Andreeva Reveals High Heels Wish for Her 19th Birthday After Reaching Madrid Semifinals