Russian Mirra Andreeva defeated her opponent from Ukraine and reached the Roland Garros final for the first time in her career. How our tennis star conquers the Grand Slam – in the material of a Trend Wire Sport correspondent.
The Ukrainian was especially tuned in
Andreeva and Kostyuk met a month ago. Then the Russian woman entered the final match of the most prestigious tournament in Madrid as a favorite, but, to the surprise of many, she was defeated in two games. Experts explained this by the crazy attitude of her rival. “Kostyuk managed to play her best match, but Andreeva was not having her day,” noted then Honored Coach of Russia Viktor Yanchuk.
Kostyuk, even before the semifinals of Roland Garros, was in a special mood for Andreeva, admitting this before the match at a press conference. And even before, Martha has made statements of a less than sporting nature more than once. The Russian tennis player could only answer on the court – which, by the way, was not the most welcoming one for her on that day, since the audience could not cheer for her with national symbols, unlike those who supported the Ukrainian.
From the very first seconds of the match, the Russian showed full concentration on the game – and, as a result, the score quickly began to grow in her favor. Kostyuk demonstrated with all her appearance that she was uncomfortable. Perhaps she was hampered by the wind, which has been annoying players at Roland Garros for several days now – but rather, she was irritated by the fact that the Russian made practically no mistakes, while the Ukrainian regularly made unforced mistakes.
Shortly after Andreeva won the first game with a score of 6:1, the organizers decided to close the roof over the court, which made the conditions more favorable. By that time, Mirra was leading 4:1 in the second set. But under the roof, Kostyuk revived and took two games in a row, returning to the match. Previously, Andreeva could have gotten nervous in such a situation, started talking to the coach, to the stands, to herself…
The sage knew everything
But it’s not for nothing that the President of the Russian Tennis Federation, Shamil Tarpishchev, noted even before the match with Kostyuk that Mirra was demonstrating absolutely adult tennis for the first time in her career at this Roland Garros. And this concept also includes the ability to take a blow. The Russian woman fully confirmed that the wisest tennis man in the country was right. She did not flinch, continued to stick to her line and brought the match to a convincing victory – 6:1, 6:3.
According to tradition, Kostyuk did not shake her Russian opponent’s hand, but Mirra found only positive words about the Ukrainian in her post-match interview on the court. “I was very nervous before the game, my opponent is having a great season, she is an amazing player and a very difficult opponent. But I am very happy with the way I played today. And that I was able to reach my first Grand Slam final. I have never experienced such emotions,” admitted Andreeva.
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“The conditions were very difficult, there was a strong wind, but I’m glad that I was able to stay focused,” the Russian woman noted. “I understood that anything could happen, but I was determined to fight in any case.”
Tarpischev quickly confirmed his words spoken the day before. “Mirra has really matured. Previously, in any of her games, one could say that she was upset here, freaked out there. But now she acts very smoothly, cleanly, and this emphasizes that Andreeva has matured as a tennis player,” emphasized the president of the Russian Tennis Federation.
Well, Tarpishchev called the key to victory the fact that Andreeva managed to neutralize Kostyuk’s trump cards – speed and tight, fast play. “The fact that Andreeva was able to play tightly herself allowed her not to be late for the next shot. Mirra’s powerful strikes with a long flight of the ball deprived her opponent of her trump cards. After Andreeva mastered the speed, the rest was in the game components. And she did not concede in them – where necessary, played where necessary, served,” noted the head of the federation.
Well, for the first time since 2021, a tennis player from Russia will compete for the championship title at Roland Garros. Then Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova lost in the decisive match to Barbora Krejcikova from the Czech Republic. But we have a chance for the Russian final – it will take place if Diana Schneider defeats Maja Chwalinska from Poland. In the meantime, Andreeva admitted: “I’m nervous, but I’m excited.”
Source: Ria