There are only girls in Rome: how Andreeva and Schneider go to the next peak
Mirra Andreeva was unable to break an unsuccessful streak in the confrontation with Coco Gauff, losing to the American for the second time in the last two weeks. However, the Russian's game against the third racket of the world in the second set inspires optimism before the start of Roland Garros. But in the doubles of the super tournament in Rome, Mirra, along with Diana Schneider, reached the semifinals, beating the first "seeds". But there were no Russians left in the men's draw, as Daniil Medvedev and Karen Khachanov were the last to leave the tournament.
One — one
This season, Mirra reached five quarterfinals, four of them were at the "thousandths". Her balance at this stage in her career before the match with Gauff was equal (6:6), but she won four of the last five quarterfinals (just the defeat in Madrid two weeks ago). In that match, Mirra served for the first set, but missed two matchballs. After that, her game crumbled, and Gauff confidently won the match, winning eight of the next nine games.
This time we saw a completely different story. In the first game, Gauff picked up her serve without any problems. In her three opening games, she won 12 out of 14 draws. Mirra had a much harder time. For example, in the sixth game, out of frustration, she threw her racket and waved off the remarks of her coach Conchita Martinez. However, this did not prevent Andreeva from equalizing the score (3:3), and starting the seventh game with a beautiful winner. However, Gauff then won six draws in a row and soon reached two break points. Mirra couldn't win them back, so she had to show her character in the next game. The Russian played two very cool pranks at the reception, earning the applause of her opponent, and soon made a reverse break.
It's a great moment to fully return to the party. However, in the next game, Mirra's serve did not go at all. Gauff scored a double set point, and after Mirra's forehand error, she won the first set. The second game started as alarmingly as possible for the fans of the Russian. Gauff confidently took her serve and made a quick break. Mirra also made her first double mistake. It seemed that the match would be a carbon copy of the quarterfinals in Madrid, but this time Mirra did not give up. She instantly made a reverse break (as in the first set), and in the fourth game she won back two break points, ending it with two beautiful winners.
At that moment, Gauff stopped being confident in her abilities, naturally losing the third game in a row. At 15:40, the American made a double mistake. And then Mirra was interrupted by the audience. They started whistling at her, knocking her down a couple of times. A couple of hesitant actions by Andreeva and Gauff quickly restored equality in the score (3:3). After that, the opponents were almost perfect on their serves, bringing the matter to a tie-break. We especially note the strong nerves of Mirra, who, serving with the score at 5:6, made a beautiful shortened and executed a perfect forehand down the line.
In the tiebreak, both tennis players continued to demonstrate an outstanding level. It was probably one of the best sets of the entire WTA season. In the end, all the small details were solved. With the score 2-1 in favor of Coco Mirra, she had a serious advantage, but the American dragged literally all the balls in the style of Rafa Nadal and still forced the Russian to make a mistake. However, Gauff soon returned the favor, missing the court with a smash from an ideal position (3:3). She managed to rehabilitate herself instantly: in the very next draw, Coco played like Roger Federer, making a beautiful cut under the backline. Mirra responded with her brilliant action, perfectly shortening at such a crucial moment (5:5). This is how the tennis players came to the climax, where, in two consecutive draws, Gauff showed exactly why she is currently in the top 3 of the ranking.
However, Mirra didn't have time to be upset. Two hours later, she entered a doubles match with Diana Schneider against the first seeded Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Rutliff. The match lasted 1 hour and 28 minutes and ended with a real drama in the tie-break. The Russians played three matchballs and were able to snatch victory with a score of 11:9. In the semifinals of the tournament, Andreeva and Schneider will play against the winners of the Sara Errani (Italy) / Yasmin Paolini (Italy) — Alexandra Eala (Philippines) / Coco Gauff (USA) match.
Lost to the favorites
In the Italian capital, Daniil Medvedev beat Cameron Norrie and Alexei Popyrin in two sets, followed by eighth-seeded Lorenzo Musetti. The 2024 Wimbledon semifinalist, who made his top-10 debut in early May, is having a successful clay season. In Monte Carlo, the Italian reached the final, where he lost to Carlos Alcaraz in three sets. In Madrid, he reached the semifinals, where he was stopped by his most uncomfortable opponent Jack Draper (now the Briton leads in a personal confrontation with a score of 4:0).
Daniil also won all face—to-face matches against Muzetti - in 2023 at the Cincinnati and Toronto hardball competitions. But in Rome, Lorenzo, like Daniel, did not give up a single set and was considered the favorite by the bookmakers. After defeating Otto Virtonen, he left no chance for Brandon Nakashima either. In these matches, the Italian has never lost his serve.
Medvedev was well aware that it would be very difficult for him on the opponent's serve. Daniel traditionally moved far away from the back line, but this technique did not work. Lorenzo had a high first serve percentage, which flew at a very good speed. Daniil allowed his opponent to make an early break, but still showed his champion character: he left the pitch for the game and, it would seem, seized the initiative. But he immediately gave up his game, but he couldn't save himself the second time.
In the second game, the home stands turned on to the fullest. The fans supported Musetti so strongly that they prevented Daniel from serving. The former world number one had to calm the local audience in the manner of a conductor. However, it was not possible to charge up with negativity this time. Muzetti again quickly led with a break and held a minimal advantage until the end of the game.
Medvedev has already given away his 10th match this season. This year, the Russian has two semifinals (Marseille, Indian Wells) and three quarterfinals (Doha, Dubai, Madrid). It's not the most impressive statistic for an elite tennis player.
For more than a year, since Indian Wells 2024, the former world tennis leader has never even reached the final, and this season he has already lost six positions in the ranking, dropping out of the top 10 for the first time in two years. Of course, it could have been much worse, and Daniel usually avoids obvious failures. But the lack of burning eyes of an athlete who has not fully realized his potential causes concern for his sporting future.
Karen Khachanov also failed to make it to the quarterfinals. The Russian lost to the third racket of the world to Alcaraz. For almost the entire match, Karen fought on equal terms with one of the tournament favorites, but still lost in the deciding set.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
