Mirra Andreeva officially breaks into Top 10: The youngest in almost two decades

Mirra Andreeva is now a reality on the front page after winning her first WTA 1000 title and debuting this Monday in the WTA Top 10. In the recent Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships final, the 17-year-old Russian defeated Clara Tauson 7-6[7-1], 6-1.

Andreeva is one of the most exciting young players of the last few years. At 17 years and 301 days old, the Russian became the youngest player to break into the Top 10 since 2007, when Nicole Vaidisova achieved it at 17 years and 106 days.

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Andreeva is the youngest player in history to win a WTA 1000 event since the introduction of the format in 2009. She is also the second-youngest woman to win a major title (WTA 1000, Grand Slam, WTA Finals) in this century. The first was Maria Sharapova – whom Andreeva has often been compared to – who won Wimbledon in 2004 at 17 years and 2 months, in an iconic final against Serena Williams.

The 17-year-old has long seemed destined for success, and her rise to World No. 9, her best ranking so far, continues to confirm Andreeva’s talent. This week, she showed that she is ready to challenge the best players for major titles and upcoming Grand Slams.

The teenager already boasts six wins over Top 10 players. On her way to the Dubai title, she defeated three Grand Slam champions: Marketa Vondrousova, Iga Swiatek (3-time defending champion), and Elena Rybakina.

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"When you enter the Top 10 and the higher your ranking is, the slower and longer it's going to take for you to get even higher because the difference in points is very, very small," Andreeva said. "I think it's going to be hard to enter the Top 5. This is the exact goal that I'm going to set for myself: to be Top 5 by the end of the year. I'm very curious if I will be able to achieve it."

Andreeva's next challenge will be in Indian Wells, where she will arrive as the 14th seed (positions were set a week ago). If she maintains her level, she is a strong contender for the title. The Russian is already 4th in the WTA Race and aims to keep advancing in her career.

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