What Mirra Andreeva was thinking before sealing Madrid Open final spot against Hailey Baptiste

Mirra Andreeva advanced to the Madrid Open final with a 6-4, 7-6 win over Hailey Baptiste.

The match was tighter than the score suggests, with Baptiste saving a match point before forcing a second-set tiebreak.

Andreeva held her nerve in the tiebreak, coming through 10-8 to clinch the win and reach her first final in Madrid.

Speaking to Sky Sports after the match, Andreeva explained what she was telling herself during the crucial moments of her semi-final victory.

Andreeva said that Baptiste would need to ‘do something extraordinary’ to beat her

“Honestly, I’m super happy that I was able to stay composed and focused, even though I had a couple of opportunities to close out the set without the tiebreak,” Andreeva said.

“When it didn’t happen, I just told myself that if she is going to win the second set, she is going to have to do something extraordinary, because I’m not going to just let her win those points.”

She continued: “I feel like she was a little bit more brave closer to the end of the set. I also got a little bit more tight. I’m just happy that I was able to force myself to play brave and really go for my serves and my shots so that I would have more opportunities to close out this match.”

Andreeva’s serve proved crucial in key moments, particularly in the tie-break. She spoke about its impact on her game during her post-match interview.

“I think so many free points were helpful,” Andreeva explained.

“At some point, I thought there had been at least a couple of games where I didn’t miss my first serve. Then obviously as soon as I thought about it, I started missing them straight away!

“So, [I] really tried not to think about it or look at statistics because when you know your percentages are good you tend to hit less first serves in for some reason.”

Baptiste’s athleticism was on full display throughout the match and there’s no shame in losing against such an impressive player who brought quality tennis from start until finish.

Naomi Broady praises Mirra Andreeva’s mindset after recent outbursts

During her fourth-round match in Madrid, Andreeva had said she wasn’t a ‘champion’ after letting a lead slip against Anna Bondar.

That mentality was tested again in the semi-final, particularly after a disputed line call in the opening set.

“[Mirra] Andreeva, the talk has been about the emotions; they weren’t there today, or they were there but in the best of ways,” she said.

Former British tennis player Naomi Broady spoke about how Andreeva managed her emotions during the match.

“We speak about the emotions like it’s such a negative, but today she channelled them, she used them for grit, for fight, and then the big release at the end.

“I’m sure that will have been a far more enjoyable match to play than the other ones where she completely loses it emotionally.

“There was a chance back at the start with that ball mark that she didn’t agree with, but she could have lost it there; it was that close, but she didn’t. She kept it under wraps.

“So I think the conversation is going to be, not so much look how good that was, but look at what you can do, what did you do, let’s do that again, and build from there.”

Mirra Andreeva plans to celebrate her 19th birthday after the Madrid Open

Mirra Andreeva turned 19 during the Madrid Open but has decided to hold off on any major celebrations until the tournament is over.

“We kind of did a little celebration yesterday at the restaurant, but I really couldn’t allow myself to even drink a soda!” she said.

“I was drinking sparkling water, and I ate a little bit of cake, but I think we will have a bigger celebration a little bit later, maybe after Rome or before Rome.

“I will get my celebration, but maybe a little bit later.”

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