Mirra Andreeva believes Aryna Sabalenka underperformed in their WTA Finals group stage encounter at Indian Wells.

After just 62 minutes on court, Andreeva stormed past Sabalenka via a 6-4, 6-0 scoreline. It was a stunning display from the 19-year-old, who has secured a place in the WTA Finals semifinals following the victory. Andreeva has since analysed the clash, during which she admitted that Sabalenka “didn’t have the best day”.

What is Mirra Andreeva’s ranking by the end of 2027?

Andreeva is currently the world number three.

Mirra Andreeva claims Aryna Sabalenka wasn’t at her best in WTA Finals match

Speaking to Sky Sports right after securing the win, Andreeva was asked by former player and pundit Marion Bartoli if she thinks it was one of the top three performances of her season. She responded: “I think that in terms of how I approached this match and in terms of how I was playing, yes.

“But I will be honest, I feel like also Aryna didn’t have the best day because I feel like she doesn’t really make so many mistakes on a normal day. So I just, I don’t know, I feel like I cannot really take all the credit for today. I just feel like it’s not very fair in some way.

“But yeah, I’m just happy that I had a goal in front of me that I was trying to commit to no matter what and just try to control the things that I can control.”

It was quite the response from Andreeva, who showed great humility despite only just claiming a memorable triumph. The Russian also stunned the Belarusian in the quarterfinals of the 2024 French Open, although Sabalenka still leads their head-to-head 4-3.

As well as claiming that her opponent was far from her best at Indian Wells, Andreeva believes her own efforts had room for improvement. Rating her display, the teenager commented: “I would give myself a good eight. To earn a 10, you have to play the best match of your life. I feel like it was good, solid, but not great enough for a 10.”

Mirra Andreeva out to continue top 10 success against Karolina Muchova

Remarkably, the WTA number three entered the tournament with one top 10 victory in 2026, which she has now turned into three in the space of a few days. Shortly before stunning Sabalenka, Andreeva defeated Elina Svitolina, also winning 6-4, 6-0. The Russian superstar can now extend her top 10 success in her final group game against Karolina Muchova, who has already lost to both Sabalenka and Svitolina.

History is on her side for that meeting, with Andreeva beating her Czech rival in their only previous tie at the 2024 Ningbo Open. She led their semifinal clash 6-2, 1-0 before Muchova was forced to retire, with the youngster going on to lose the final to Daria Kasatkina.

At Indian Wells, Sabalenka still has a chance of joining Andreeva in the semifinals. She meets Svitolina in a battle for the second spot. Meanwhile in Group 1, Linda Noskova is the only player to have made it to the knockout stages so far.