Teen sensation Andreeva into Wimbledon last-16
Russia's sensation Mirra Andreeva has made it into the last-16 of Wimbledon at the age of 16. Photo: AAP
Mirra Andreeva, the teenage sensation of Wimbledon 2023, has made it into the last-16 with victory over Anastasia Potapova.
Russian teenage prodigy Andreeva has continued her dream Wimbledon run at just 16 years of age, reaching the fourth round in her very first senior grass-court tournament.
Andreeva was nerveless as she defeated her compatriot, the No.22 seed Anastasia Potapova 6-2 7-5 on Sunday to reach the last-16.
The youngster had to come through qualifying and was playing her sixth match of a rain-interrupted fortnight. But she seemed perfectly at home on the No.3 showcourt to defeat her far more experienced 22-year-old opponent.
Andreeva, who reached the final of the Australian Open girls’ competition in January, will burst into the world’s top 100 thanks to her Wimbledon progress. But she looks far from finished as she eyes a fourth-round contest with the 25th seed, former US Open finalist Madison Keys.
The youngster blitzed through the first set against her unsettled opponent. Potapova regrouped to move into a 4-1 lead in the second, prompting Andreeva to demonstrate her resilience to win the next three games.
Potapova then successfully defended seven break points in a 10-minute marathon game, only for the relentless Andreeva to keep gnawing away, eventually breaking serve for 6-5 and triumphing after 95 minutes.
She’s the youngest player since the then 15-year-old Coco Gauff in 2019 to reach the fourth round at Wimbledon, the perfect follow-up to her making the third round at the recent French Open.
But she appears to keeping her feet on the ground, despite the Netflix cameras, filming the tennis documentary series Break Point, following her everywhere.
“Actually, I think I’m just a normal teenager, like normal girl. I do, I think, everything that the girls my age do. I love to watch some series. I have to do my school. I have no choice. I have to suffer for two more years, and that’s it,” Andreeva said.
“Sometimes it depends on my mood, but sometimes I prefer to be alone, just with myself, yes.”
– AAP
