Week in Review: Andreeva shines (and cracks us up), Sonmez inspires (and stuns)

It was quite a busy week on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz as we head into the heart of the Australian swing.

Two more champions were crowned in Adelaide and Hobart, and first-round action kicked off at the Australian Open.

Here's a recap of all that went down last week on tour, and the most notable moments that caught our eye.

The Star of the Week

Mirra Andreeva

What a statement made by Mirra Andreeva in Adelaide. There has been much talk of the 18-year-old coming back down to Earth after her back-to-back titles in Dubai and Indian Wells last season, but she wasted little time quieting that talk and adding a fourth title to her resume.

Andreeva didn't just win Adelaide; she dominated. The World No. 8 breezed in all eight of her sets, never dropping more than three games. She dispatched Diana Shnaider 6-3, 6-2 in the semifinals before routing Victoria Mboko 6-3, 6-1 in the final.

She kept the momentum going in the first round of the Australian Open, coming from a set down to beat Donna Vekic 4-6, 6-3, 6-0.

The Most Inspiring Performance of the Week ... on Court

Elisabetta Cocciaretto 

Elisabetta Cocciaretto came through qualifying to win the Hobart International, her second career title and first since 2023. The 24-year-old Italian dropped just one set -- to Ann Li in the second round -- in her seven matches, and defeated rising teenage star Iva Jovic convincingly in the final.

The title moved Cocciaretto up 24 spots in the PIF WTA Rankings, to No. 56. She'll play Julia Grabher in the first round of the Australian Open.

The Most Inspiring Performance of the Week ... off Court

Zeynep Sonmez to the rescue

What a memorable day it was for Zeynep Sonmez, for a host of reasons. We'll get to her performance on court in a bit, but we were even more impressed with this gesture of kindness and humanity. As Ekaterina Alexandrova was serving for the second set at 5-3, Sonmez noticed that a ball kid next to the umpire's chair was struggling.

The World No. 112 hurried over to her, helped her stay upright and got her to a seat in the shade, where she received medical attention.

"She was really struggling," Sonmez told BBC Sport. "She said she was fine, but it was really obvious she was not fine. So I went to grab her and said, 'Sit down and drink something, you're not fine.' As we were walking she fainted, so luckily I grabbed her. She was really shaking.

"I always say it is more important to be a good human being than a good tennis player. It was just my instinct to help her, and I think everyone would do the same. I'm happy I got to help."

The Best Match of the Week

Elsa Jacquemot d. Marta Kostyuk [20], Australian Open first round

The first major upset of the Australian Open came with some history. World No. 60 Elsa Jacquemot edged World No. 20 Marta Kostyuk 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4), 7-6 (7) in the first triple-tiebreak match at the Australian Open in the Open Era.

The Frenchwoman came from a set and 5-3 down, and saved one match point, in a back-and-forth match that lasted 3 hours and 31 minutes, just two minutes shy of 2025's longest match.

It was a particularly tough blow for the Ukrainian, who started her season with a run to the final in Brisbane. She rolled her ankle late in the deciding set, and though she finished the match, it was later revealed that she tore a ligament. She has since pulled out of the doubles draw.

This would have also been the upset of the week, if not for...

The Biggest Upset of the Week

Zeynep Sonmez d. Ekaterina Alexandrova [11], Australian Open first round

Back to Sonmez, who after her remarkable display of decency pulled off the biggest upset of the first round.

The qualifier came from 3-0 down in the deciding third set to knock off 11th seed Alexandrova 7-5, 4-6, 6-4, who is nearly 100 spots higher than her in the PIF WTA Rankings.

Sonmez also came from behind in the opening set, after trailing 5-2. With the win, the 23-year-old became the first Turkish woman in the Open Era to win a match at the Australian Open. She'll play Anna Bondar in the second round.

The Best Shot of the Week

Maria Sakkari's improbable return

How did she do that? What even was that? Words don't do it justice. Just watch.

"I'm 30 years old now," she said. "I've been playing tennis for 25 years. I could never imagine that I can actually hit that kind of return ... I'm pretty sure it's gonna [be] probably one of the best shots of the tournament."

Probably? You're far too humble, Maria.

Sakkari went on to beat Leolia Jeanjean 6-4, 6-2, and will next play eighth-seeded Andreeva in what should be an excellent second-rounder.

The Funniest Moment of the Week

Mirra Andreeva wins the title, thanks her team herself

Andreeva delivered quite the performance on court in the Adelaide final, and then perhaps topped it during the trophy celebration.

"I gotta say this, cause I say it all the time and I don't want to break the routine," she said on court. "Thanks to me. I want to thank myself for being brave in all the matches that I played. I want to thank myself for pushing myself every day in the practices the last few weeks.

"I want to thank myself for changing my mentality, for fighting until the very last point, for doing what I gotta do, doing what my team tells me to do."

Complementing the Snoop Dogg-inspired irony was the Nike sweatshirt she was wearing, which said, "I want to thank myself — Mirra.”

Good stuff. 

The Coolest Moment of the Week

A day of surprises for Coco

Media day was anything but predictable for the World No. 3 in Melbourne. 

Ahead of her practice session, she was stunned to find Emmy Award-winning actress Storm Reid sitting in the umpire's chair. And later, at the very end of her press conference, she took a final question from a "journalist," aka New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor, who wanted to inquire if he could play doubles with her.