Mirra Andreeva won 11 games in a row to defeat Aryna Sabalenka 6-4 6-0 on Tuesday at the WTA Finals, securing her place in the semi-finals as group winner.
The 19-year-old fell behind 4-1 in the opening set before mounting a comeback against the world number two. Andreeva utilized loopy high shots to disrupt Sabalenka’s rhythm and controlled the baseline with 16 winners to six unforced errors.
The teenager has now secured victories in her past two encounters against Sabalenka. She achieved a triumph in the 2025 Indian Wells final on the identical court. She enters the semi-finals with four consecutive sets won during her debut appearance at the tournament.
“I will be honest, I feel like Aryna did not have the best day,” Andreeva said to Sky Sports, according to BBC Sport. “I feel like I cannot really take all the credit today – I feel like that is not very fair in some ways.”
Sabalenka struggled with consistency by committing 23 unforced errors and failing to hit a single ace. She won only seven points during the second set as Sabalenka won just 10 of the last 55 points from a 4-1 lead.
“I’m even happier than I was after my first match,” Andreeva said in her on-court interview reported by Tennis Majors. “I feel like I could play another two matches. I’m so full of energy. I’m so pumped up. I’m so happy.”
The match echoed Sabalenka’s quarter-final defeat at Roland-Garros in June where she surrendered a set and a 4-1 advantage. She wore tape on her knee, but her movement was not visibly hindered during the straight-sets loss.
The outcome guarantees Andreeva advances through Group 2 as group winner. She cannot be caught in the provisional standings even if she loses to Karolina Muchova on Friday after securing head-to-head victories over both possible qualification rivals.
🎾 𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗨𝗟𝗧: Mirra Andreeva beat Aryna Sabalenka 6-4, 6-0 to reach the WTA Finals semifinals. ↳ 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗧𝗘𝗫𝗧 Andreeva, 19, is the third seed playing the WTA Finals for the first time. She trailed 1-4 in the opening set and then won 11 games in a row. Sabalenka is the… pic.twitter.com/MKF3IZUtGN
Earlier coverage: WTA Finals: Sabalenka and Andreeva Secure Hard-Fought Opening Wins in Indian Wells
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