Mirra Andreeva’s Indian Wells campaign did not go according to plan.
The Russian, still only 18 years old, began the tournament by demolishing Solana Sierra 6-0, 6-0.
However, her run was ended by Katerina Siniakova in the next round. Siniakova, a ten-time major champion in women’s doubles, beat Andreeva 4-6, 7-6, 6-3.
After the contest, Andreeva threw her racket towards the net, before appearing to swear at the Indian Wells crowd.
Do you agree? Let us know your reasoning in the comments 👇
Andreeva admitted afterwards that she was ‘not proud’ of her conduct, before adding that the profanities used were directed at herself, rather than the crowd.
Andreeva has understandably come in for some criticism since the incident occurred. Some has been fair, while other strands of opprobrium have not been.
Mirra Andreeva should be forgiven after her on-court outburst
“I’m not really proud of how I managed it,” said Andreeva after the match.
“It was to myself, to everyone, basically. I mean, after the loss, I just get very angry, so I say those things sometimes to myself. I mean, first to myself, of course, but then, yeah, it was just anger coming out, just a lot of emotions. Not really towards anyone.”
“Those are the things that [I] really need to work on soon,” she added. “I don’t know. Not in the future but whenever I get the chance. Yeah, I hope that I can work on it and I get better in that, as well.”
As stated previously, Andreeva’s actions have resulted in some backlash online, with many onlookers questioning the Russian’s behaviour.
While these reactions are most certainly understandable, tennis fans should take time to consider the context of Andreeva’s outburst before criticising the young star.
It is easy to forget that Andreeva is only 18 years old.
Both Andreeva and Coco Gauff have suffered the same curse of early success: being expected to act like a fully-grown adult despite their relative youth.
Who has impressed you the most?
And while her actions were certainly ill-advised, Andreeva is a teenager and should not be held to the same standards as some of her older peers on the Tour.
It is simply unfair to expect the 18-year-old to be perfect at such a young age. She has made a mistake and acknowledged her error; and she will most likely learn from this incident.
How many WTA ranking points has Mirra Andreeva surrendered in California?
Mirra Andreeva won her second WTA 1000 title in Indian Wells last year. As a result, she earned 1000 WTA ranking points.
This year, she reached the fourth round, surrendering 880 of those points.
As a result, Andreeva is set to fall one place in the rankings to world number 10, with rival Victoria Mboko replacing her as the new world number nine.
Andreeva will have the opportunity to bounce back from her Indian Wells woes at the Miami Open, which will begin on March 17.
