Daria Kasatkina Surprised at How Fast Mirra Andreeva Has 'Grown a Lot' After Losing to the Teenager at the Roland Garros

Teenage sensation Mirra Andreeva claimed an important victory over Daria Kasatkina to reach the quarter-finals of the Roland Garros. The Russian youngster is playing only her third French Open but performs as though she has played over a decade at the tournament. After the match, Kasatkina revealed that the Russian teen has improved in many aspects of her game.

Last year, Andreeva was in tears after losing to Kasatkina in the WTA 500 tournament in Ningbo. The loss was painful to the 18-year-old because of the windy conditions, which made it hard for her to adapt, but easy for an experienced Kasatkina. Almost eight months after the loss, Andreeva has stunned Kasatkina in the fourth round of the French Open.

A year ago, Andreeva was ranked World No.38, but today, she’s ranked No.6 in the WTA rankings. This is a result of her impressive run at the WTA 1000 titles earlier this year in Dubai and Indian Wells, where she claimed the two titles. She hasn’t been at that level this clay season, but at the French Open, she looks in some form.

The World No.6 played extraordinarily against Kasatkina, giving the Russian-born Australian no chance in the match with her aggressive style of play. She served well, saving three or five break points, and was just a little better in almost every aspect of the court. She emerged victorious in the end 6-3, 7-5 on Court Suzanne Lenglen.

During Kasatkina’s press conference, she was asked what she noticed about Andreeva’s game during their clash. The Aussie revealed that the Russian teenager has grown a lot and her style of play keeps getting better every time.

She has grown a lot. I see that her serve has improved because we train together, and she keeps getting better. Everyone can see how well she moves on the court, that’s what makes you a winner. She also plays very well from the baseline, which is one of her strengths, but she has also become mentally stronger. It’s something I notice every time we train together.

Andreeva is yet to drop a set at the French Open, a very good improvement from her run in Madrid and Rome, where she lost to Coco Gauff in the quarter-finals. The victory over Kasatkina was her 31st of the season. Also, she’s into the quarter-finals of the Roland Garros doubles alongside her partner Diana Shnaider.

Mirra Andreeva’s tactics she deployed to beat Daria Kasatkina

Andreeva became the youngest player to reach back-to-back quarter-finals at the Roland Garros since Martina Hingis (1997-1998). She was asked during her press conference about how she played near-flawless tennis against Daria Kasatkina. The teenager revealed that despite being aware that Kasatkina knows her style of play, she continued with her tactics, which helped her to claim the important victory.