How Andreeva became the Queen of Paris: Lucky draw, ruthlessness and the right mindset

[p][a href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/1NYy698qaXmafIdjCKqj5e?si=B47zlm91SUWgjIjBkqImRw"][b]Listen to the audio version of this article on Spotify.[/b][/a][/p][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/andreeva-mirra/lI6fOOat/"]Andreeva[/a][/b] was among the wider circle of main title contenders before the French Open began, but no one expected her to storm through the tournament, losing just a single set and sweeping aside all her opponents. [/p][p]The 19-year-old Russian had previously struggled to live up to her favourite status. But at this tournament, she showed a completely different mentality, which brought her the Grand Slam title she had dreamed of. [/p][p]Not long ago, she was known for almost childish outbursts, but in Paris, Andreeva appeared very composed.[/p][p][b]"I want to thank myself for believing in myself,"[/b] she said after winning the title. [/p][p][b]"For giving 100% even when it's been tough, trying every day to be better as a person and a player, believing I can do this, fighting so many demons inside of me. [/b][/p][p]"My psychologist says you can always choose how you're going to be on the court, how you're going to play and who you're going to be as a person as well. I decided to choose to be a fighter," she added.[/p][embed guid="95ff61b6-64ed-48b6-8aa2-dd5cb3035d6c" url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zl8ZMaPLLw" social-type="youtube" /][p][b]"I watched a lot of [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/federer-roger/GrsQDFC0/"]Roger (Federer’s)[/a] matches here. No one is going to have the same aura, but I really want to try to impersonate the way he behaves on the court. [/b][/p][p][b]"[/b][b]Maybe that helped me because I wanted to look good on the court, not be frustrated or not happy with how I play," [/b]she explained in her post-match interview.[/p][h2]Key moments[/h2][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/tennis/andreeva-m-lI6fOOat/bassols-m-dvDRCAx9/?mid=IkLM0CeL"]Andreeva vs Bassols (3-6, 6-1, 6-1)[/a][/b][/p][p]After easily defeating home hope [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/ferro-fiona/WfnqI5WD/"]Fiona Ferro[/a], a former top-40 player, in the opening round, she was close to elimination in the second round.[/p][p]The unpredictable Spanish player [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/bassols-ribera-marina/dvDRCAx9/"]Marina Bassols[/a] took the first set from Andreeva with relative ease. But then Andreeva responded by winning five games in a row, completely turning the momentum of the match.[/p][image alt="Andreeva's last four wins in Paris" id="01b3be74-85b2-45b6-b392-6988fd34c15b" credit-line="Flashscore (photo by REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane)" guid="a479b990-756f-41ec-920b-6afc39ad9c58" original-width="1080" original-height="1080" /][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/tennis/andreeva-m-lI6fOOat/kostyuk-m-8CZqQdSa/?mid=tMeHmEwK"]Andreeva vs Kostyuk (6-1, 6-3)[/a][/b][/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/kostyuk-marta/8CZqQdSa/"]Marta Kostyuk[/a] entered their semi-final as the favourite, having not lost a single match on clay this season, winning two tournaments, including the Madrid 1000, and riding a 17-match winning streak.[/p][p]However, Andreeva broke her serve three times in the first set. And when Kostyuk tried to mount a comeback at the start of the second, Andreeva saved a break point with authority and immediately regained the lead.[/p][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/tennis/andreeva-m-lI6fOOat/chwalinska-m-OIxOD54s/?mid=dddfTkHb"]Andreeva vs Chwalinska (6-3, 6-2)[/a][/b][/p][p]The last step is often the hardest, and at the start of the final, it looked like it could be a dramatic decider at Roland Garros. Both finalists broke each other's serve twice, but from 3-2 to [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/chwalinska-maja/OIxOD54s/"]Maja Chwalinska[/a], it became a one-sided affair.[/p][p]Andreeva won nine games in a row, which meant a complete turnaround and closing in on match point. After a brief hiccup, it came, and after 83 minutes, it was all over in Paris.[/p][embed guid="d1cfca30-92e8-41ea-9a63-30edfc849928" url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVWjACQ11-Y" social-type="youtube" /][h2]Key numbers[/h2][p][b]9 - [/b]Is the French Open a tournament for more mature players who know how to handle unpredictable clay? That may have been true for much of the 21st century. But the fact is, in the Open Era, Roland Garros now counts its ninth player to win the trophy before turning 20.[/p][p]Before Andreeva, the list included Evonne Goolagong (1971), Chris Evert (1974), Hana Mandlikova (1981), Steffi Graf (1987), Arantxa Sanchez (1989), Monica Seles (1990), Iva Majoli (1997), and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/swiatek-iga/jNyZsXZe/"]Iga Swiatek[/a] (2020). Seles even managed it three times…[/p][embed guid="49d11446-48c6-43d8-b31b-2275f47c7d92" url="https://x.com/OptaAce/status/2063271894141341750?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p][b]9:43 - [/b]The road to the trophy was actually relatviely quick for Andreeva. She spent less than 10 hours on court and needed just 15 sets to win the title. Her fastest match was against [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/cirstea-sorana/fBPsm3Iq/"]Sorana Cirstea[/a], sweeping the Romanian veteran in just 57 minutes.[/p][p][b]701 - [/b]This was the combined ranking of all seven opponents faced by this year’s Queen of Paris. Andreeva didn’t have to play any top-10 players. Instead, the draw gave her two qualifiers, one player from outside the top 100, a wildcard, and a rival who used a protected ranking. To her credit, though, the champion didn’t drop a set in any of her three matches against seeded players.[/p][embed guid="fe1bc5fd-6691-415b-9f1f-199cc3162ee5" url="https://x.com/tntsports/status/2063286204791992755?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]Andreeva’s path to the trophy was undoubtedly helped by the early exits of higher-ranked players and top favourites. In the quarter-finals, she didn’t have to face world number two and Australian Open champion [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/rybakina-elena/UDzElXdm/"]Elena Rybakina[/a], and in the next round, she also avoided four-time champion Swiatek. But most won’t remember that, and she got the job done.[/p][p]During the trophy ceremony, she invited her coach, Conchita Martinez, to the stage, who admitted that coaching the young, talented champion is not always easy.[/p][p]"[b]She’s a good girl off the court, but I won’t lie. Sometimes it’s not easy to work with her in training. But I’m glad this victory gives her confidence. Still, there’s a lot to improve. We have to stay humble and keep working. Nothing will be easy,"[/b] said Martinez.[/p][p]Meanwhile, Andreeva hinted that her appetite is only growing. [b]"These feelings are something special and a bit addictive. In fact, I’m already thinking about how I’ll prepare for the grass season. I’d love to experience this again,"[/b] she announced, setting her sights on the Wimbledon title.[/p]