Mirra Andreeva Reaches Dubai Final After Shocking Elena Rybakina

Mirra Andreeva, at just 17 years old, has reached the biggest final of her career after defeating Elena Rybakina 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 in the semi-finals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

Andreeva, who is ranked No. 12, made an impressive comeback after being 1-3 down in the final set. She had already stunned the tennis world with a victory over world No. 2 Iga Swiatek earlier in the tournament, and now she has secured a spot in her first WTA 1000 final.

“I didn’t expect much coming into Dubai,” Andreeva admitted. “I was thinking, ‘I’ll just play and see what happens.’ But sometimes, when you don’t focus on the result, you end up playing your best tennis. This has been one of my best tournaments.”

The young Russian has had a remarkable rise in tennis over the past year. She reached her first major semi-final at the 2024 French Open and claimed her first WTA title in Romania. Now, she’s made it to the final of one of the biggest tournaments on the WTA Tour.

Rybakina, a former Wimbledon champion, had won their only previous encounter in 2023, but Andreeva showed her resilience to come from behind and secure victory. Rybakina has faced some personal challenges recently, with her former coach Stefano Vukov being suspended for breaching the WTA’s Code of Conduct. She has since added Davide Sanguinetti as her official coach.

Despite these off-court issues, Rybakina played well in Dubai, saving six match points to beat Paula Badosa and defeating Sofia Kenin. However, Andreeva proved too strong in the end, breaking Rybakina’s serve twice in the first set and finishing with 11 winners.

Andreeva now looks forward to the final, where she will continue to chase her first WTA 1000 title.