Nearly blown off the court in the opening set of the Indian Wells final by World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, Mirra Andreeva was acting out early in the second -- like the teenager she is. She shook her head, rolled her eyes, hunched her shoulders and chirped at her team sitting courtside.

It wasn’t anything they hadn’t seen for most of the day.

A little over an hour later, BNP Paribas Open trophy in hand, Andreeva offered an apology to her coach Conchita Martinez.

“I know as I always say, I can be tough -- and today was not the exception,” Andreeva said at the post-match ceremony. “I know I was, as you like to say, `a little brat’ a little bit in the morning.

“That’s because I was super nervous, so I’m sorry for that.”

All is forgiven.

That’s because Andreeva slowly, surely took the game to Sabalenka. Toward the end, it was Sabalenka talking to herself, gesturing frantically with her hands and hitting wild, off-balance shots. Andreeva was a 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 winner on Sunday afternoon -- a victory that may completely reshape the order of things on the Hologic WTA Tour.

In this riotous run in the desert, Andreeva defeated the No. 1-ranked Sabalenka, No. 2 Iga Swiatek and No. 7 Elena Rybakina. She also beat Swiatek and Rybakina on her way to the title last month at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

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Andreeva is still only 17 years old. But as things developed, her poise and confidence returned. The moment -- perhaps the biggest of her young life – did not prove to be too big.

Context is everything, and Andreeva has created some breathtaking comparisons. She is:

  • The youngest player to defeat the World No.1 and No.2 in a single WTA event since 1990.
  • The youngest player to win consecutive WTA 1000 (previously known as Tier I) events since Martina Hingis in 1997.
  • The third-youngest player to defeat No. 1 in a WTA final from a set down -- older only than Jennifer Capriati (1991) and Gabriela Sabatini (1988) in the past 40 years.

Ah, the ‘90s. When the Internet was a vast unknown -- incredibly, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter/X weren’t even a gleam in anyone’s eye -- and you could get a dozen eggs for about a dollar.

The tipping point came in the third game of the second set.

Previously, Andreeva had forged seven break points -- and failed to convert even one. In fact, going back to her two one-sided losses to Sabalenka earlier in the year, she was a collective 0-for-18. Which explains why Andreeva later said, “the anger was just boiling inside of me.” 

The 19th was the charm. Andreeva hit a big return that Sabalenka couldn’t match and she had the break at 2-1. Andreeva would win four of the last six break points to lock down the match.

Afterward, she proceeded to drop quotes from Snoop Dogg and LeBron James. It doesn’t seem quite real, but Andreeva’s 19 match-wins this year lead all players.

Since breaking through nearly two years ago in Madrid at the age of 15, Andreeva has been coming for the best players in tennis. She’s already up to No. 6 in Monday's updated PIF WTA Rankings.

The wait is over. She’s here.

Five questions with Mirra Andreeva

Did I hear you drop a LeBron James quote in your post-match interviews?

Andreeva: Something like that, yes. I remember that LeBron James once gave an interview and I like to use it for motivational videos before the match. He said that when you don’t feel 100 percent physically you can choose to be 100 percent mentally, and that’s what makes us champions. So I just tried to do that today -- and it kind of worked.

In the end, in your mind, what was the difference in the match?

Andreeva: I think that it was me finally being able to think positively about what I do. Because first set for me seemed like I was a bit too negative. I was frustrated about not converting the break points and winning some important points and games, so I just really tried to be positive.

You referenced Snoop Dogg and thanked yourself after the match. What are you proudest of from this performance?

Andreeva: I think that me being able to bounce back after a pretty-not-good first set … because I had some difficulties and really forced myself to think positively. Because my team they did a lot for me, so I also felt that if I just lose like this, it’s not really nice. I really tried to fight for every point after.

You just beat World No. 1, No. 2 and No.7 on your way to the title … honestly, a few months ago, did you think you were capable of doing that?

Andreeva: I would say that now I’m sure that I can try and win really big matches against big players. Before I would just come out on court and try to win as many games as possible, because I had nothing to lose. Now facing top players, I really feel like I can beat them. There’s a belief in myself that now I can do it. That was the key today as well.

Your original goal for 2025 was Top 10. After you achieved that in Dubai, it was Top 5. You’re at No. 6 in the rankings, so what are your goals going forward?

Andreeva: Kind of still trying to reach Top 5, because I haven’t yet. Also the goal for me is try and maintain this level and try to maintain this mindset as well. I’ll just try my best to do that, and we’ll see if I’m able to do it or not.