“She’s still better than me,” Mirra Andreeva wins over hearts as she credits idol Ons Jabeur after recent win against the Tunisian at the Australian Open

Mirra Andreeva registred first-ever top-10 win of her career.

“She’s still better than me,” Mirra Andreeva wins over hearts as she credits idol Ons Jabeur after recent win against the Tunisian at the Australian Open

Ons Jabeur, Mirra Andreeva (Images via Eurosport, Mirra Andreeva)

Russian tennis prodigy Mirra Andreeva registered an emphatic win over Tunisian ace Ons Jabeur at the ongoing 2024 Australian Open as the 16-year-old beat a two-time Wimbledon finalist in straight sets. Andreeva won the match 6-0, 6-2 in just fifty-four minutes. However, despite outbattling Jabeur, Andreeva called the Tunisian a better player.

As Ons Jabeur is known for her drop shots, Mirra Andreeva was expected to struggle against the Tunisian. But it was the opposite at the Rod Laver Arena as Andreeva outclassed Jabeur in her drop shots. The Russian landed quite a few clean drop shots that left Jabeur perplexed.

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Mirra Andreeva was asked about this change in her game during the post-match press conference. She was asked how she prepared to tackle Jabeur’s drop shots which create a lot of trouble for her opponents. To this, Andreeva humbly replied that she was working on tackling those slices and drop shots from the past 24 hours.

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Yes, I was preparing for this match. I knew she was going to do a lot of slices & dropshots, so since yesterday I was working on it… I think she's still better than me in this. I will improve.
Mirra Andreeva said with a smile on her face.

Mirra Andreeva exceeds her expectations against idol Ons Jabeur

It is no secret to tennis fans that Mirra Andreeva draws inspiration from Ons Jabeur’s style of play. The 16-year-old Russian has said it out in public that she wants to emulate the Tunisian and now when Andreeva had a chance to play against her idol, she came out on top, with flying colors.

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Mirra Andreeva (Image via CNN)

Andreeva revealed after the match that she had jitters coming into this contest. She also claimed that the performance she put in the first set was surprising for her as well. 

I was really nervous before the match because I’m really inspired by Ons, by the way she plays. Before I started to play on the WTA Tour, I always watched her matches and I was always so inspired. Now I had a chance to play against her and honestly, in the first set, I showed amazing tennis. I honestly didn’t expect that from myself.
Mirra Andreeva said. (H/T: Australian Open website)

Andreeva then signed off by saying that she was really happy with her performance. Notably, this was the Russian’s first-ever top-10 win of her career. The 16-year-old Russian has been clinical so far in her performance at the 2024 Australian Open.

Andreeva beat Bernarda Pera in straight sets in her opening-round match. Now, after ousting Jabeur, the Russian teen will next face France’s Diane Parry in the third round.

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