By Richard Pagliaro | Tuesday, January 25, 2022
Mirra Andreeva beat Chinese wild card Wang Xiyu 7-6(5), 6-3 setting up a Wuhan showdown vs. older sister Erika Andreeva.
Photo credit: Robert Prange/Getty
The Andreeva sisters will stage a family reunion in Wuhan.
Mirra Andreeva beat Chinese wild card Wang Xiyu 7-6(5), 6-3 setting up her first pro showdown vs. older sister Erika Andreeva at the Wuhan Open.
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The Andreeva sisters will join Venus Williams and Serena Williams and Czechia twins Karolina Pliskova and Kristyna Pliskova as the third set of sisters to square off in a WTA main-draw match during the last decade.
Lucky loser Erika Andreeva rallied from a break down in both sets beating Australian Open semifinalist Dayana Yastremska 7-5, 6-4 in her opening-round win yesterday.
The 20-year-old Erika Andreeva roared back from 2-5 down in the opening set, saving a couple of set points when Yastremska serve for the set at 5-4. That save sparked Erika Andreeva through 10 of the final 12 points to take the first set on a five-game surge.
Today, 17-year-old Mirra Andreeva came back from 4-5 down to take the tiebreaker in a first-set devoid of a service break.
No. 16-seeded Mirra Andreeva broke at love for a 4-3 second-set lead and consolidated before scoring a second straight break to close.
Watching big sister play spikes nerves in herself, Mirra Andreeva admitted earlier this year.
It's been a been a rapid rise for Mirra Andreeva, who debuted in the WTA Top 20 this week after a sensational break-out season last year.
At the 2023 Mutua Madrid Open, a then 15-year-old Mirra Andreeva became the third youngest woman in WTA history to win a match in a 1000 level tournament when she stunned 2021 US Open finalist Leylah Fernandez in her opener. Andreeva went on to upset Top 20 players Beatriz Haddad Maia and Magda Linette before suffering a crushing straight-sets loss to Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka.
That thrashing left Mirra Andreeva hungry for a rematch. She got it at Roland Garros in June stunning world No. 2 Sabalenka 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-4 to reach her maiden major semifinal in Paris.
The winner of the first Andreeva sisters clash will face either third-seeded Jasmine Paolini or Yue Yuan next.