Mira Andreeva, 16, reached the third round of Wimbledon in her debut. Andreeva topped No. 10 seed Barbora Krejcikova 6-3 4-0 on Thursday when Krejcikova retired with a left leg injury.
“It’s not the way I wanted to win the match, of course,” Andreeva said in her post-match press conference. “She had some problems with her foot. Of course, I wish her a speedy recovery.”
Wimbledon: Scores | Draw | Play order
Another major third round: Andreeva, who was runner-up at the Junior Australian Open earlier this year, has played just two Grand Slam events on the main tour. But both times, she managed to qualify and reach the third round, having also done so at Roland Garros last month.
On the Wimbledon promoter, world number 102 Andreeva booked her place in the third round when Krejkova had to withdraw from her highly anticipated match after exactly an hour of play.
Andreeva is now the third-youngest player in the Open Era (since 1968) to reach the third round of Wimbledon as a qualifier. Only Kim Clijsters (1999) and Coco Gauff (2019) have achieved this feat at a younger age.
“It’s my first experience on the lawn,” said Andreeva. “It’s only my fifth game. I love the grass so far. I’m not playing that bad.
“I met Andy Murray here. But I’m too shy to talk to him. When I see him I try to leave the facility super fast not to talk to him because I’m too shy.”
Krejkova’s injury concerns: 2021 Roland Garros champion Krejcikova was forced to take a medical time-out at the end of her first-round win over Heather Watson on Wednesday.
On Thursday, the trainer visited Krejcikova after the first set and worked on the lower part of her left leg. The Czech kept his composure but received more treatment after trailing 3-0 in the second set. After one game, Krejcikova stopped playing.
assertive play A crippled Krejcikova naturally struggled against Andreeva’s violent play. The teenager matched her powerful groundstroke performance with impressive court coverage, running on nearly every ball the Czech sent her way.
Andreeva made her first break of the day by chasing down Krejcikova’s shot and firing it with a backhand pass to take a 4-3 lead. Andreeva repeated that exact play on the first match point at 5-3, resulting in a second straight break of serve and a one-set advantage.
Another winner gave Andreeva a quick break at 2-0 in the second set, as the injured Krejikova found it increasingly difficult to keep up with the teenager’s match. Andreeva has never had a stopping point in the truncated confrontation.
I look forward: Andreeva now has a chance to play Week 2 in a Grand Slam for the first time in her fledgling career. In the third round, Andreeva will meet either No. 22 seed Anastasia Potapova or another seed, Kaja Jovan.
I will do my best, – said Andreeva. “If I can advance to the round of 16, I will be very happy. If I can advance to the semi-finals, of course I will be very happy. I will just try to do my best and then we’ll see what I do but honestly I don’t have any goals. I’m just playing.”
More is coming…
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