The young Russian rising star has plenty of time on her side to become a tennis superstar
The tears shed during the Roland Garros semi-final may be a turning point in the career of rising star Mirra Andreeva. As long as she will transform her disappointment into strength and not regret. The successes will come. The 17-year-old Russian was defeated by Jasmine Paolini in straight sets and, during the end of the second set, the Russian lost her emotional train of thought, bursting into tears. It’s normal, she’s still just a young girl. The 17-year-old Russian player leaves Paris after a memorable adventure, which must be free of regrets but full of emotions and sensations to carry with her. To treasure it and grow as a tennis player.
“I made many mistakes, that was the most difficult thing to accept. I know I could have done better, but I take many positive aspects. I would say it is a good result despite the defeat – the Russian analyzed with a cool head – so I can bring take home many positive things from this tournament. Of course I’m a little disappointed with the result of this last match, but that’s how it is. Now we have to move forward. Honestly, I could have played better, I made a lot of mistakes, mistakes that I don’t normally make. It was a little hard for me to accept, I tried to manage it and fight it, but I guess today wasn’t the right day. Obviously she played very well too, she played great tennis,” she told at the press conference.
“After a defeat it is always difficult to go back to thinking positively, perhaps this is not the case for everyone, but in my case I always find the negative thoughts first. Let’s say that I still have to deal with this aspect, maybe in a few days I will be able to talk about it with my team. Little by little I will assimilate that I did a good job here, but I know I could have done better.
Overall it was a good tournament, I’ll just need a couple of days for the negative thoughts to fade away and I can put everything into perspective. If they had asked me at the start of the tournament if I saw myself reaching the semi-final I would have said no. Now we’ll have to go home, but I won’t talk much, I’ll be too down in the dumps. Luckily everything is easier when you have your team and your family next to you, they make you feel better,” she added.
There will be a lot of work to do now for Andreeva. You will have to unplug to present yourself well at the switch on grass-courts, on a playing surface that could give you great satisfaction. As far as I’m concerned, I believe that the young Russian’s still immature tennis can adapt well to all surfaces, over time. Including the grass, which, as we have seen in recent years, almost tends to become a clay or a quagmire of grass and dry soil. It’s right that she is now saddened, but she should also be proud of what she managed to achieve during Parisian Fortnight. In order to turn those tears into victories.