Andreeva stuns Swiatek to enter final
Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva beat defending champion Iga Swiatek 7-6(1) 1-6 6-3 to reach the Indian Wells final where she will face top seed Aryna Sabalenka, who avenged her Australian Open final loss to Madison Keys with a 6-0 6-1 rout.
Andreeva, 17, has shown enormous potential this season and now has her sights set on back-to-back WTA 1000 titles following her triumph in Dubai last month.
“Really tough match, tough conditions,” she said. “I tried to really hang in there. It was not easy, but I’m super happy with the win today and I can’t wait to play finals on Sunday.”
After a tight first set, Andreeva was flawless in the tiebreak, leaning over and letting out a roar when she enticed a forehand error from Swiatek on set point.
The Polish second seed stormed back in the second set, breaking in the first game and levelling the contest when Andreeva’s backhand went wide.
Andreeva, who was studying handwritten notes during the changeovers, grabbed the momentum back by breaking to open the third set as temperatures in the California desert plummeted and the wind picked up.
She ripped a forehand winner to go up 3-1 as the frustration began to take hold for Swiatek, who dumped a backhand into the net on match point.
The loss ends five-time Major champion Swiatek’s bid to become the first woman to win the tournament in the Southern California desert three times.
A ruthless Sabalenka needed just 52 minutes to get pay back for her loss to Keys in the Melbourne Park final in January. “I didn’t expect that match to be that fast but I’m super happy,” Sabalenka said.
