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06/06 14:02 CDT Russian teen Mirra Andreeva says she had to overcome so many
demons inside to win the French Open
Russian teen Mirra Andreeva says she had to overcome so many demons inside to
win the French Open
By ANDREW DAMPF
AP Sports Writer
PARIS (AP) --- Bent over with her hands covering her face, her knees getting
dirtied on the red clay court, Mirra Andreeva was celebrating --- processing
might be the more appropriate word --- how she had finally overcome "so many
demons inside" that came with being a teenage tennis phenom.
After bursting onto the scene at 15, Andreeva became a Grand Slam champion at
19 when the Russian ended the run of 114th-ranked Polish qualifier Maja
Chwalinska with a 6-3, 6-2 victory in the French Open final on Saturday.
"I've done a lot of visualizations before. Not just this tournament, but I've
had dreams, I've had a lot of thoughts on how it's going to happen, if it's
going to happen, when it's going to happen, where," Andreeva said, still hardly
breathing as she talked quickly in true teenage style. "The feeling in real
life is so much better than in your dreams.
"I can call myself a Grand Slam champion," Andreeva added.
The biggest challenges for Andreeva have not been on the court --- she already
has one of the best attacking baseline games in the sport --- it's been the
mental side. And her stubbornness.
"Her attitude is difficult," said Conchita Martinez, Andreeva's coach and a
former Wimbledon champion. "You tell her something, and maybe she's not open to
listening. ... When she works hard and when she listens and she does
everything, she has no limits."
Andreeva acknowledged as much during the trophy ceremony.
"I know I can be a tough cookie sometimes and it's pretty hard to put up with
me," Andreeva said.
The victory took Andreeva one step further than Martinez, who lost the 2000
French Open final to Mary Pierce.
Pierce presented the winner's trophy to Andreeva, who became the youngest woman
to win the clay-court Grand Slam since Monica Seles was 18 when she claimed her
third straight French Open in 1992.
"You're so young and talented. It's so annoying," the 24-year-old Chwalinska
told Andreeva.
Andreeva took the unusual step of thanking herself "for believing in myself,
always giving my 100%, even when it's tough, trying every day to be better as a
person and as a player, believing that I can do this, fighting so many demons
inside of me.
"Only I know how tough it was for me," Andreeva added. "How nervous I was
throughout these two weeks."
Andreeva also thanked her psychologist, who she said was watching from Florida:
"Everything that you've told me I've been trying to use these two weeks."
Chwalinska opens up about depression Chwalinska was attempting to become the first qualifier to capture the Roland Garros title. She was a promising junior alongside four-time Roland Garros champion Iga Swiatek before she began struggling with depression in 2019. "Tennis is such a tough sport. It's so individual. We start so early. We are basically kids when we start," Chwalinska said. "People are expecting that we are going to behave like adults already and we are just kids really. So the pressure is huge." Andreeva was born in Siberia and moved to Sochi and eventually France to develop her tennis career. She drew a loud applause from the crowd on Court Philippe-Chatrier when she spoke a few words of French during the trophy presentation. "Thanks for your support today and over these past two marvelous weeks here in Paris," Andreeva said in French. "It was very important for me."
Breakthrough at 15 Andreeva has been considered a Grand Slam contender since she burst onto the scene as a 15-year-old at the 2023 Madrid Open, where she became the third-youngest player to win a main draw match at a WTA 1000 tournament and made the quarterfinals. Lately, Andreeva has had to contend with playing under neutral status and without her country's flag because of the war with Ukraine. When she beat Marta Kostyuk in the semifinals, Kostyuk refused to shake her hand, as has been the custom for Ukrainian players facing Russians ever since the war started in 2022. "Every person doesn't want to have a war in the world," Andreeva said. "I never think about those things when I play."
Mastering the wind The final was played under a mostly sunny sky, though wind was a factor in the first Grand Slam final for both players. Chwalinska double-faulted on the opening point of the match, but she was the first player to hold serve in the fifth game for a 3-2 lead. But then Andreeva won nine stright games to take control as she found a way to hit through the wind and answer Chwalinska's array of spins and drop shots. Whereas Chwalinska would retreat to handle high balls in the wind, Andreeva often would move forward and take balls on the rise. "She definitely handled wind much better than me," Chwalinska said. "She was not running away from the ball." Andreeva produced 25 winners to Chwalinska's 10 and also had fewer unforced errors: 26 to 29. There was a strong Polish presence in the crowd. When Chwalinska was introduced, fans held aloft red-and-white Polish flags and chanted her name: "Ma-ja, Ma-ja." Andreeva had little support from the crowd, although there was a shout of "Davai, Mirra!" ("Go, Mirra") in Russian late in the match. Alexander Zverev plays Flavio Cobolli in the men's final on Sunday to conclude the wildest Grand Slam in recent memory. ___ AP Sports Writer Samuel Petrequin contributed to this report. ___ AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
Chwalinska opens up about depression Chwalinska was attempting to become the first qualifier to capture the Roland Garros title. She was a promising junior alongside four-time Roland Garros champion Iga Swiatek before she began struggling with depression in 2019. "Tennis is such a tough sport. It's so individual. We start so early. We are basically kids when we start," Chwalinska said. "People are expecting that we are going to behave like adults already and we are just kids really. So the pressure is huge." Andreeva was born in Siberia and moved to Sochi and eventually France to develop her tennis career. She drew a loud applause from the crowd on Court Philippe-Chatrier when she spoke a few words of French during the trophy presentation. "Thanks for your support today and over these past two marvelous weeks here in Paris," Andreeva said in French. "It was very important for me."
Breakthrough at 15 Andreeva has been considered a Grand Slam contender since she burst onto the scene as a 15-year-old at the 2023 Madrid Open, where she became the third-youngest player to win a main draw match at a WTA 1000 tournament and made the quarterfinals. Lately, Andreeva has had to contend with playing under neutral status and without her country's flag because of the war with Ukraine. When she beat Marta Kostyuk in the semifinals, Kostyuk refused to shake her hand, as has been the custom for Ukrainian players facing Russians ever since the war started in 2022. "Every person doesn't want to have a war in the world," Andreeva said. "I never think about those things when I play."
Mastering the wind The final was played under a mostly sunny sky, though wind was a factor in the first Grand Slam final for both players. Chwalinska double-faulted on the opening point of the match, but she was the first player to hold serve in the fifth game for a 3-2 lead. But then Andreeva won nine stright games to take control as she found a way to hit through the wind and answer Chwalinska's array of spins and drop shots. Whereas Chwalinska would retreat to handle high balls in the wind, Andreeva often would move forward and take balls on the rise. "She definitely handled wind much better than me," Chwalinska said. "She was not running away from the ball." Andreeva produced 25 winners to Chwalinska's 10 and also had fewer unforced errors: 26 to 29. There was a strong Polish presence in the crowd. When Chwalinska was introduced, fans held aloft red-and-white Polish flags and chanted her name: "Ma-ja, Ma-ja." Andreeva had little support from the crowd, although there was a shout of "Davai, Mirra!" ("Go, Mirra") in Russian late in the match. Alexander Zverev plays Flavio Cobolli in the men's final on Sunday to conclude the wildest Grand Slam in recent memory. ___ AP Sports Writer Samuel Petrequin contributed to this report. ___ AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
