"I will not say my tactics" - Mirra Andreeva refuses to share her plan against Aryna Sabalenka ahead of French Open 2024 QF
Mirra Andreeva refused to disclose her strategies ahead of her French Open quarterfinal against Aryna Sabalenka. The Russian reached her maiden Grand Slam quarterfinal with a 7-5, 6-2 win over local girl Varvara Gracheva.
The unseeded Andreeva kicked off her Roland Garros campaign by defeating Emina Bektas 6-2, 6-3 in the first round. She then went on to overcome 19th seed Victoria Azarenka in a tough match with a score of 6-3, 3-6, 7-5, followed by a dominant victory over Peyton Stearns 6-2, 6-1 in the second and third rounds respectively.
The 17-year-old most recently won against Gracheva to secure her place in the quarterfinals of the French Open. She this became the second-youngest player in this century to reach the quarterfinals at Roland Garros, behind Sesil Karatantcheva , who attained the feat in 2005.
Here, Andreeva will face second seed Aryna Sabalenka.
During the post-match press conference, Mirra Andreeva chose not to divulge her tactics and game plan for her match against the World No. 2.
"Well, I will not say my tactics right now. She'll probably not watch it, or her coaches will not watch my press conference but just in case. Yeah, well, of course we will add a few adjustments. We will change something because the way I played the last two times didn't work. So, of course me, I don't have anything in my head, so I hope my coach will help me with it," Mirra Andreeva said [at 3:19].
The World No.38 stated that she typically assesses her opponent's gameplay on the court and adjusts her strategy accordingly. However, she acknowledged that Aryna Sabalenka poses a different challenge which will require her to make thorough preparation before the match.
"I'm a player who goes on court and I'm just playing and I see how things are, and then I can adjust a little bit during my match. Here, I feel she's really experienced; she's a player of a bit of another level. So I have to be prepared from the beginning, and I hope my coach will help me with that, and we'll see how it goes," she added [at 3:50].
Mirra Andreeva & Aryna Sabalenka's head-to-head record ahead of their French Open 2024 QF clash
Mirra Andreeva and Aryna Sabalenka have faced each other twice on the WTA Tour.
Seeded second, Sabalenka kicked off her 2024 French Open campaign with a victory over Erika Andreeva in the first round. She then went on to defeat qualifier Moyuka Uchijima and her close friend Paula Badosa in the second and third rounds, respectively.
The Belarusian then overcame 22nd seed Emma Navarro to advance to the quarterfinals at Roland Garros.
Aryna Sabalenka and Mirra Andreeva have faced off twice, both times at the Madrid Open. Their first encounter was in the fourth round of the 2023 Madrid Open, which Sabalenka won 6-3, 6-1.
Their most recent meeting was this year, in the quarterfinals in Madrid where the World No.2 emerged victorious with a score of 6-1, 6-4.