Martina Navratilova impressed by one Mirra Andreeva shot that ‘men have been using well for 10, 15 years’
Mirra Andreeva “plays like” Justine Henin, but her defensive game reminds tennis great Martina Navratilova of Carlos Alcaraz.
The 17-year-old has enjoyed an incredible few weeks as she won her maiden WTA 1000 title at the Dubai Tennis Championships in February, beating Grand Slam winners Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina en route to the title.
Andreeva took her unbeaten run to 12 matches as she followed it up with another dazzling run at the Indian Wells Open as she again beat Swiatek and Rybakina to reach the final.
In the showpiece match, she came from a set down to beat world No 1 and three-time major champion Aryna Sabalenka.
With that result, the teenager has surged to a career-high No 6 in the WTA Rankings and many believe it is only a matter of time before she wins her first Grand Slam title.
The legendary Navratilova knows what it takes to win majors as she won 18 in singles, a record 31 in women’s doubles, and also collected 10 in mixed doubles.
What excites the player-turned-commentator is Andreeva’s ability to turn defence into offence as she likened parts of the Russian’s game to both former world No 1s Henin and Alcaraz.
“She’s a complete player, Mirra. I actually compare her to Carlos Alcaraz,” Navratilova told wtatennis.com. “She doesn’t have the power of some other players, but she hits the ball really well, down the lines – and defends. That’s what reminded me of Alcaraz.
“She turned defence into offence. She had Sabalenka scratching her head – ‘What do I have to do to win the point?’ That’s how people feel playing him.
“And she’s 17? I mean, the way she plays is more like [Justine] Henin. She’s got the slice and is really great down the line on both sides. Henin attacked the down-the-line return. Moved well, but Mirra has a bigger serve and a bigger game.
“And those drop shots. The slice did some damage with Sabalenka. The guys have been using the slice pretty well the last 10, 15 years but the women have discovered it recently, seeing how it works.”
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Up next is the Miami Open and Andreeva has the chance to win three WTA 1000 tournaments in a row.
She has a bye into the second round and will then face either Veronika Kudermetova or Xin Wang in the second round.
Navratilova added: “It’s amazing, it’s a big ask, but … physically, she’s fit, obviously.
“But all those matches in a row? We’ll see. It’s all new to her. After that, she can take a break before going to Europe and getting on the clay. It’s doable. I didn’t think she would beat Sabalenka. I thought it was possible but not likely. Yet, here she is. She found a way.”
