
Mirra Andreeva flies into quarter-finals with straight-sets win over Navarro
Taking the ball early to deny the American time, she changed the pace, as she loves to do, and manoeuvred her opponent into uncomfortable positions from which mistakes flowed. Andreeva is the youngest player to reach this stage at Wimbledon since the Czech Nicole Vaidisova in 2007 and on her Centre Court debut, with Roger Federer watching from the Royal Box, she was so much in the moment that she didn't even realise she had won.
'It's something crazy,' said Andreeva, who will now play Belinda Bencic, the Swiss who also reached her first Wimbledon quarter-final, having become a mother in April last year.
'I was super-nervous, playing first time on Centre Court. I really tried my best not to look in the box because I knew that I would lose focus, as I did at 4-1 [in the second set], [when] I saw Roger and Mirka [his wife]. It's been one of my dreams to see you in real life, so when I saw both of you I got really, really nervous. But I'm super-happy I managed to stay focused.'
The great thing about young players is that they seem to improve almost week on week, improvements in their game appearing from one tournament to another. Coached by Conchita Martínez, the 1994 singles champion, Andreeva has been tipped for the top for a while but has really hit her stride this year, winning the Masters 1000 title in Indian Wells.
Her serve has also become a real weapon. She dropped only two points on first serve in the opening set, giving her the platform to show off her full game, from drop shots and angles to power and lobs. Tennis IQ, they call it. She was 5-1 up before Navarro knew what had hit her and she closed it out two games later.
A brilliant point, which ended with a flicked forehand pass, gave Andreeva the break in the opening game of the second set and though Navarro broke back immediately, the Russian broke twice more to open up a 4-1 lead. The American nabbed one of the breaks back but Andreeva then broke to love for victory, even if she didn't know it at first.
'I just kept telling myself I'm facing break points, tried to tell myself I'm not the one who's up in the score,' she said. 'I think that helped me to stay focused and in the end I completely forgot the score. I'm happy I did it because I think I would be three times more nervous on a match point.'
Sign up to The Recap
The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action
after newsletter promotion
It is a little over 14 months since Bencic gave birth to her daughter and on Monday the Swiss beat the No 18 seed, Ekaterina Alexandrova, 7-6 (4), 6-4. It is her fourth major quarter‑final in all but first since 2021 and her first away from the US Open.
'Finally I managed to do the next step to go to the quarter-finals,' Bencic said. 'I think it's just really a result of the work we put in and also the mindset that I have now. Of course, you could see I'm trying my best to win. I'm fighting with everything I have on the court. I still want to win very badly. It's much different now and I am surprised, but of course I'm not going to complain about it.'
Liudmila Samsonova will also play in her first Wimbledon quarter-final after beating Jessica Bouzas Maneiro 7-5, 7-5. The Spaniard had a set point at 5-4 in the opener but Samsonova, the 19th seed, came through.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


BBC News
5 minutes ago
- BBC News
Transfer news: Man Utd target Sesko and Watkins, plus Diaz and Isak updates
Update: Date: 08:10 BST Title: 'United's move for Watkins is ironic' Content: Simon StoneBBC Sport chief football news reporter in Chicago Any move for Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins would be an ironic one. It was Watkins that lost his place in Villa's starting XI when Marcus Rashford joined the club on loan in January. Watkins, 29, was the subject of a bid from Arsenal during that window but Villa rejected the Gunners' offer. United have so far signed three players this summer, spending almost £130m on attacking duo Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo, who could also play as a central striker but are thought more likely to occupy Amorim's preferred two number 10 slots, and teenage defender Diego Leon. Amorim spoke on Friday about his current preference to sign players with knowledge of the Premier League. Update: Date: 08:03 BST Title: Man Utd interested in Sesko and Watkins Content: Simon StoneBBC Sport chief football news reporter in Chicago Ollie Watkins and Benjamin Sesko are at the top of Manchester United's list of strikers if they decide to bring in a new centre forward this summer. A final decision has yet to be made and there is an acceptance among United's hierarchy that they need to start offloading some of their unwanted players – which might not happen until nearer the 1 September deadline – in order to fund a new arrival. Neither player would be straightforward to bring to Old Trafford. Newcastle, who have missed out on a number of key targets this summer and also have uncertainty over their own star forward Alexander Isak, are known to be keen on RB Leipzig's Sesko while Villa have made it known they are not interested in selling Watkins. However, United feel that stance might change nearer to the deadline, although they feel a suggested £60m price tag would be far too high for 29-year-old Watkins, whose current contract runs to 2028. Update: Date: 07:59 BST Title: Good morning! Content: Rise and shine. We're back on the transfer trail today. Grab a brew and we'll talk you through the breaking news from Old Trafford...


BBC News
5 minutes ago
- BBC News
Gossip: Rangers likely to sign Moore on loan
Rangers have emerged as favourites to sign English winger Mikey Moore, 17, on loan from Tottenham. (Matt Law - Telegraph, external)Want more transfer stories? Read Tuesday's full gossip columnFollow the gossip column on BBC Sport


BBC News
5 minutes ago
- BBC News
Gossip: Forest eye move for Traore
Nottingham Forest are eyeing a move for Fulham and Spain winger Adama Traore, 29, who previously worked with manager Nuno Espirito Santo at Wolves. (Telegraph - subscription required, external)Want more transfer stories? Read Tuesday's full gossip columnFollow the gossip column on BBC Sport