Mirra Andreeva credited a sudden surge of confidence in the first-set tie-break and playing confidently in the third set as one of the big reasons behind her Indian Wells victory against Iga Swiatek.
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On Friday, the 17-year-old registered her 11th consecutive win after overcoming the Polish defending champion 7-6 (1) 1-6 6-3.
When it mattered the most, Andreeva stepped up. Late in the opening set, the Russian teenager failed to serve out for the set at 5-4 but then absolutely dominated the tie-break. While she lost the second set, she showed great mental strength in staying composed and coming up big in the decider to book her second consecutive WTA 1000 final.
Andreeva reflects on her win over Swiatek
"After I couldn't serve for the set in the first set, I think she led 6-5, so I came back at 6-All, and I just felt like, I don't know why I felt so much confidence, and I felt like I'm gonna go and play the tiebreak like it's the last tiebreak of my life. So I just went for all my shots. My serve was great, and just felt super comfortable and super confident during the tiebreak. I kind of played on a roll," the No. 9 seed said.
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Reflecting on the second set, Andreeva honestly admitted that she was "outplayed" by Swiatek. But instead of being negative or pessimistic about it, she started thinking about how to change the rhythm and momentum.
"I started to think what can I change? And after, I just decided to kind of still play the same but maybe go for my shots more, trying to play a little bit more aggressive, and in the end I got the win, so I feel great," the 17-year-old explained.
Also, Andreeva mentioned that she felt that she "dealt with the nerves and the pressure pretty good."
Now, the Russian will also be hoping to do something similar against top seed Aryna Sabalenka in the Indian Wells final.
