‘Just me and the yellow fuzzy ball’: How Mirra Andreeva swept through Adelaide

Near the end of Saturday’s trophy ceremony, Mirra Andreeva thanked the physio who before the Adelaide International final had taped her toes and drawn smiley faces on them. 

“I guess my team comes next, but I do feel like it was all me,” she told the crowd. 

Then, with the subtle skill of a veteran standup comedian, she smiled, pausing slightly for the inevitable laugh that followed. Andreeva’s still only 18, but she's already developed the poise and presence to work even the biggest rooms.

When she won her first tournament on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz two years ago in Romania, borrowing the concept from Snoop Dogg, Andreeva thanked herself. She did it again last year after winning in Dubai and Indian Wells.

“I want to thank myself for being brave in all the matches I played,” Andreeva said. I want to thank myself for pushing myself every day of the practice these last few weeks. I want to thank myself for changing my mentality, for fighting until the very last point.

“For doing what I’ve got to do, for doing what my team tells me to do -- sometimes with complaining, but it’s OK.”

Everything is more than OK with Andreeva after her lights-out 6-3, 6-1 victory over Victoria Mboko. After dropping the first three games, Andreeva won nine straight -- and 12 of the last 13.

Mboko, who took a medical timeout, clearly wasn’t 100 percent, something she readily acknowledged afterward. But that doesn’t diminish Andreeva’s accomplishment. She spent only 4 hours and 44 minutes on court in four matches, losing only 15 games.

After a blazing start in 2025 -- and a disappointing finish -- this is just what Andreeva was looking for after reaching the quarterfinals in Brisbane.

In a lively conversation with wtatennis.com, she said she was consciously trying to distance herself from the weight (wait?) of expectation that comes with being a gifted young player.

“I don’t really want to tell myself to set any goals because after you have expectations on yourself,” Andreeva said, “I’ve had enough of that the last few years. 

“Hopefully, I can just keep this level up, keep the same mindset. Keep my tennis going until the end of the year. I think with that, great results will come. I’ll focus on improving myself, improving my game, working hard.”

This is the first time Andreeva -- perhaps aware that three of the past four Australian Open champions have won warmup events -- has played a tournament immediately ahead of a Grand Slam. After making the 400-mile trip to Melbourne, the No. 8 seed will have Sunday off before a first-round match against Donna Vekic on Monday.

More from our chat with the Adelaide champion:

You’re down 0-3 … what made you think you could win this one?

Well, she was playing pretty well, and I told myself not to pay attention to that. She’s had a great start, so just stick to the plan and keep playing my game. Try to find options to go for my shots, be aggressive. After all, it worked.

You won the title at Indian Wells 10 months ago … what does it mean to you to win in Adelaide?

Yeah, of course it means a lot to me to win another WTA title. It’s been a pretty hard road since my title at Indian Wells … I’m not making any finals after that … It was very smooth this week and I’m just very happy with the way I played.

Your on-court speech was very funny -- where did you get your sense of humor?

[Laughing] Me and my family, we like to joke around and annoy each other. So, I think I get it from my dad, mostly. He likes to pick on my mom all the time. He likes to make a lot of jokes. It might be coming from my dad, but it’s just in my family, this sense of humor.

You were 31-7 to start 2025, but 10-8 on the backside … What was your takeaway from that?

I don’t know. It probably has something to do with working a lot in the preseason. Last year I was also playing pretty good at the beginning of the year. Now, I started the season -- just my second tournament and I already have the title. It feels very special to me. I just hope that I can keep this attitude and keep it going.

What did you concentrate on in your offseason workouts?

We really worked on improving my physical shape. To be more consistent on the court, to be able to defend well, get almost all the balls in the court. Me and Conchita, we worked on being more aggressive and going for my shots. And then, yeah, I was just trying to be smart and really use the right shots at the right time. Just happy that me and [coach] Conchita [Martinez] did such good work.

You are listed at 5-foot-9 … but it seems you have grown in the past year .. how tall are you, exactly?

Last time I updated my height on WTA, I put 175 in centimeters. But last time they measured me, I was 178 (5-foot-10), so I’ve grown, yes. I need to update my WTA profile. I feel like I’m growing still a little bit.

A major semifinal in 2024 and two quarterfinals in 2025 … what do you need to do to go further?

Honestly, I’ve been playing not bad in Grand Slams last year, but obviously they’re not the results we were hoping for, losing in the quarters two times in a row. I think I just have to not think about what stage of the tournament it is and just don’t think about who I’m playing against, just think about that the ball is coming from the other side. There is no other player -- it’s just me and the ball. I think that next time, in Melbourne, I’m just going to focus on me and the yellow, fuzzy ball -- and that’s it.