Racket start: Mirra Andreeva wins her second title of the season

Mirra Andreeva won her second title of the season and the fifth of her career. In the final of the WTA-500 tournament in Linz, the first racket of Russia had to fight Anastasia Potapova, who played under our flag last season and now represents Austria. The meeting lasted for three sets and lasted 1 hour and 57 minutes.

The path to the final of Potapova and Andreeva

The 2026 season did not start well for both athletes. But if Mirra had a victory at the Pentathlon in Adelaide and reached the fourth round of the Australian Open and the Masters in Miami, then Potapova approached the tournament in Linz with a negative win-loss ratio.

Anastasia's injury had a big impact on her decline: the athlete admitted that she had finished playing the Australian Open with a broken finger. Just before Linz, she took a month-long break, skipping one of the "millennials", and, apparently, got rid of her health problems.

At the same time, it's still amazing how easily Anastasia "rode" her rivals. In matches with Zhang Shuai, Tamara Korpac, Lilly Tagger and Donna Vekic, she did not give up a single set. Moreover, Potapova only brought the matter to a tie-break once. Against this background, the words of the tennis player that there was no favorite in the final are completely logical.

"You can't name a favorite, because the final is a completely different match, unrelated to the tournament itself, and if you choose the winner this way, out of nowhere, you can easily make a mistake. You never know what might happen in the final," Ubitennis quoted her as saying.

Mirra's path to the decisive game was not so simple. Being the first seed, she started from the second round, where she defeated American Sloane Stephens from the sixth hundred ranking. What followed was a difficult three-set match with Sorana Kirsty, but Andreeva was able to turn the tide of the meeting and put the squeeze on the 36-year-old Romanian. In the semifinals, the Russian defeated Elena-Gabriela Ruse in an hour and a half.

Mirra was wary of her opponent in the finals, but she also allowed herself to joke.

— You know, we call her Potato (translated from English — "potato"). I've been training with her this week, and it seems like she's started playing more aggressively. The training was tough, and I know it's going to be difficult for me in the finals. She moves well, likes to hit the ball early. But I will try to prepare in the best possible way," Andreeva told the WTA press service.

Zero result: Russian tennis players unsuccessfully started the clay season

Medvedev, Rublev and Khachanov won only one match at the Monte Carlo Masters.

The hardest start for Andreeva

It was really difficult for Mirra in the final, especially in the first set, when Potapova showed an incredible game. The Austrian representative not only served great (three aces and 75% with the first ball), but also took it well. So I made three breaks.

Already in the second set, Andreeva began to act more confidently at the reception. This resulted in a 6-4 victory, even though it turned out to be extremely difficult. The outcome of not only the match, but the entire tournament was decided in the third game.

It seemed that the fifth game, consisting of 11 draws, was the key. Mirra made a break, but immediately gave up her serve, leveling her own efforts. However, Andreeva immediately took the lead again. Only this time the Russian was able to bring the game to victory without incident.

This success allowed Mirra to rise one place in the ranking and beat Victoria Mboko from Canada. Andreeva became the ninth racket of the world and will feel a little more confident in the top 10. In general, the first title in three months after a series of failures inspires fans of the 18-year-old Russian with certain hopes at the start of the clay season.

"First of all, I want to congratulate Nastya on such a great tournament," Mirra said. — You are a very strong opponent, you played great in the final and made me work at my limit. It was very difficult for me to find a solution against your game. A real fighter and a great person. I wish you to achieve everything you want in your career. Good luck with everything. Thanks to my dad, who was here with me, supported me every day, brought me lunch and dinner because I was too lazy to leave the room.

The next WTA tournament will be held in Stuttgart from April 13 to 19. Mirra's opponent in the first match will be the representative of Latvia Elena Ostapenko. Lyudmila Samsonova, Ekaterina Alexandrova and Diana Schneider were also among the Russians in the main draw.