Teenage Grand Slam winner Mirra Andreeva exudes calmness of a champion at S’pore Tennis Open

SINGAPORE – She leapt into the air to fire an ace that closed out the match, landed on the left foot and strode towards the net for handshakes the very second her other foot hit the ground – in one fluid motion.

The match was won, but there was no fist pump from Mirra Andreeva, just a hint of an upturn on either side of her lips in what is perhaps best described as a stoic smile.

The 2026 French Open champion took just 72 minutes to beat Aliaksandra Sasnovich of Belarus 6-2, 6-2 in the round of 16 of the Singapore Tennis Open, cruising to victory in front of a packed OCBC Arena on Sept 23.

Andreeva is only three months into being a Grand Slam winner, but it was clear that the 19-year-old Russian is already getting familiar with the weight and expectation that comes with champion territory.

“Today, I was super calm, I was not even nervous before the match. It was kind of the vibe today: Just be a little bit calmer, and accept. No matter what happens, just carry on,” said the top seed of the WTA 500 Singapore event.

“I was like, I’ll just go out there and play. I was feeling comfortable.”

The world No. 5 indeed looked comfortable on court from start to finish. She fired five aces, converted six of seven break points and won 72 per cent of first-serve points.

It was perhaps a performance expected of a player who has a Paris Olympics women’s doubles silver medal and two WTA 1000 titles – Dubai and Indian Wells – to her name. And the crowd at the 4,000-capacity centre court got behind her, cheering every ace and shouting her name during breaks in play.

“I felt like the support that I received today was incredible. The support for me meant a lot today, and I hope that people can bring the same energy to the next match that I will play,” said Andreeva, who admitted that the calm confidence she just showed is still something she is growing into.

“Every day is different, and I feel like sometimes I find myself worried about some things more than usual… sometimes there are days where you just feel more comfortable when you’re more calm,” she added with a confident shrug of the shoulders.

She will next meet Canadian Leylah Fernandez, who beat American Alycia Parks 6-4, 6-3 in the last match of the day.

“Leylah, I feel like she likes to take the ball early, she’s aggressive, she likes to go for it as well,” said Andreeva. “So it’s not going to be easy, but I’m ready for it.”

In the day’s earlier match, Maja Chwalinska – Andreeva’s opponent in the 2026 Roland Garros final – stormed into the quarter-finals with a dominant 6-0, 6-1 win over Oleksandra Oliynykova.

The fifth-seeded Pole converted six of eight break points, taking just 59 minutes to win.

Chwalinska will next face defending champion Elise Mertens, who advanced after her last-16 opponent, two-time Grand Slam winner Barbora Krejkicova, withdrew due to a lower back injury.

The tournament also lost second seed Amanda Anisimova, who withdrew on Sept 22 because of a left wrist injury.

The American world No. 11, who received a first-round bye, was drawn to face Australian Talia Gibson in the round of 16.

Lucky loser Viktoria Morvayova of Slovakia will take Anisimova’s place and face Gibson on Sept 24.