She knows how to pick ‘em, Mirra Andreeva. Limited to a dozen tournaments under player development rules, the 16-year-old Russian has already managed to achieve a grand slam of major appearances.
Last summer, she came through qualifying to make the third round at Roland Garros and the second week of Wimbledon. By the time Andreeva arrived at Flushing Meadows, her ranking had risen by 80 places and her qualifying days were behind her. The teenager now has at least one win at each of the four slams.
A lesser talent might have sought to take her first steps in the professional game at more humble stops on the tour, but Andreeva is a young woman in a hurry. She joked last year that she hopes to win more majors than Novak Djokovic, suggesting 25 as an appropriate number. Depending on events over the next 10 days, that figure may yet have to be revised upwards, but the signs that Andreeva can compete at the highest level are encouraging, and on Wednesday in Rod Laver Arena she took another significant step forward with a 6-0, 6-2 rout of Ons Jabeur, the sixth seed.
The Russian’s performance was every bit as remarkable as that extraordinary scoreline would suggest. Andreeva eclipsed Jabeur, a veteran of three grand slam finals, in just about every way a player can be eclipsed: with her movement, consistency and powerful ball-striking, but also with her composed decision-making and variety.
As she romped to the first top-10 win of her career in just 54 minutes, Andreeva appeared utterly fearless, the only obvious sign of anxiety coming at the death, when she nervously shanked an inviting overhead long while serving for the match. That she was facing her childhood idol, on a stage where she suffered a heart-breaking loss in the junior final to her 16-year compatriot Alina Korneeva this time last year, only added to the magnitude of her achievement.
“I’m happy I played with Ons,” said Andreeva, who insisted she was “really nervous before the match”.
“It was one of my dreams to play against her, because I really like the way she plays. I’m inspired by her, so today it meant a lot, this match that I won.”
Good as Andreeva was, Jabeur was like a magician with a misfiring wand. Her serve, both first and second, deserted her. Volleys flew long. Backhands nosedived into the net or flew wide. She had only nine winners to offset her 24 unforced errors, and the unfolding agony of a humbling defeat could be traced in her features: a pained expression after 10 minutes, a disbelieving smile as Andreeva rifled a backhand of pinpoint precision beyond her to close in on the first set, and finally, a fruitless late hold notwithstanding, a look of weary resignation. Jabeur’s innate decency shone through as she approached the net with a warm-hearted smile at the end.
“She’s so nice,” said Andreeva. “After the match, she came to me, she wished me luck. I just know that she is who she is, and she never changes. That’s what I like about her.”
The teenager will face Diane Parry of France next, with Barbora Krejcikova, the ninth seed, potentially the biggest obstacle to a place in the quarter-finals. Andreeva defeated Parry for the loss of just three games at Roland Garros last year, and has yet to lose a set against Krejcikova in two meetings. Currently ranked 47th, she is set to rise roughly a dozen places, and could go even higher. Not that she is getting carried away.
“I don’t think that I achieved something incredible, so I have time still to do that,” said Andreeva. “Sometimes when I’m lying in bed, I can overthink a little bit, but the next morning I’m totally fine. I mean, I’m 16. Why do I have to think about the rankings? I’m going a bit higher, and so my goal is to go higher and higher.”
Maria Timofeeva provided another noteworthy Russian success, prevailing 1-6, 6-4, 6-1 against Caroline Wozniacki, the 2018 champion.
“It definitely sucks and it’s disappointing,” said Wozniacki. “I felt like this was my match to win, and I didn’t. I obviously sit here with a very disappointing feeling, because looking back, I feel like the match kind of slid out of my hands.”
Coco Gauff, the US Open champion and fourth seed, survived a tough first to move into the third round with a 7-6 (7-2), 6-2 victory over Caroline Dolehide.
“She’s a tough opponent,” said Gauff of her fellow American. “She plays big, pretty much, on every shot.
“Not my best tennis, but, you know, a lot of improvement to look at for the next matches.”