Andy Murray slams commentator for harsh take on Mirra Andreeva prior to comeback, praises mental strength of 16-year-old
WTAFriday, 19 January 2024 at 09:07
Mirra Andreeva managed to turn it around from the brink in a stunning comeback seeing off Diane Parry 1-6, 6-1, 7-6 despite being a double break down in the decider and also saving a match point along the way as she reached the second week of a Grand Slam again at the Australian Open.
Andreeva received criticism from commentators on her mental strength after the match was slipping away at points however former World No.1, Andy Murray wasn't having none of it and delighted in proving them wrong.
Tweeting post match, he said: “Andreeva down 5-1 in third. Commentator “she really needs to work on mental side of her game… she’s too hard on herself when she’s losing.” 30 minutes later 7-6 Andreeva wins.
“Maybe the reason she turned the match round is because of her mental strength. Maybe she turned the match around because she is hard on herself and demands more of herself when she’s losing/playing badly? Winner.”
For someone who is only at the start of her career, she is bound to get through peaks and troughs which Murray realises all too well but believes she has the winners' mentality to demand more even when she is not at her best. Andreeva also is known to be a huge fan of Andy Murray so will likely delight in seeing the tweet praising her as a winner. Next up for her though is Barbora Krejcikova or Storm Hunter in the fourth round.
Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.
claps 0visitors 0
Just In
Popular News
Latest Comments
- Raducan'tdo and the media's love affair with her may be due to her looks. Since she does nothing for tennis, what else is going on with the 'love'?? She is best at maintaining a "presence" via anti-Social Media and maintaining her sponsorships.
mandoist14-09-2026 - As soon as someone makes a statement like this we are all waiting for the inevitable outcome of the EXACT OPPOSITE!!! He’s got a lot of work to do if you’re both the fitness AND mental coach and your client loses her mind when she’s losing.DaveyWavey14-09-2026
- Endless intentional ball-bouncing is a ploy. Extended screaming in competition (but never, ever on the practice courts) is a ploy. Neither of these things are a "strategy". Bottom Line: WTA + ATP do not care. They consider these things free marketing and advertising issues.mandoist14-09-2026
- YAWN! Thank Dog for women’s tennis because the men’s tournament was quite boring. Not a fan of Zverev and Ben played poorly compared to his QF and SF matches.DaveyWavey14-09-2026
- Congrats Rybakina! Hopefully she can keep the top ranking for the remainder of the year. Not sure why we need to keep mentioning Raducanu in these ranking posts. Your ranking will drop when you don’t play for months on end.DaveyWavey14-09-2026
- "This of course a stark change to Rybakina who is obviously more timid..." That just may be the dumbest thing ever written about Lena. For a CCO, Mr. Gill seems to have either made an error in judgement -- or needed filler for this article -- to say something so ridiculous.mandoist13-09-2026
- “The way I like to put it – no disrespect to anybody – is that this is her house, and all the other girls are just guests, and it’s time for them to go home” Well now... seems John Stacy has made a complete ass of himself. Doubt he'll be receiving any invitations to Lena's "house" any time soon.mandoist13-09-2026
- I am sorry, but Sabalenka has NO EXCUSE for her despicable behaviour. She lacks self and mouth control! The message is being sent but Saba isn't getting it! She is full of arrogance and pride. Hopefully, after this defeat she will be on the way to becoming a humble lady LIKE ELENA! I hope she never regains the world No. 1 until she develops some humility.Rapunzel13-09-2026
- Sabalenka began showing signs of her game gradually 'changing' since last season. I predicted her fascination with posting endless Selfies, participating in commercial media distractions and constant Social Media nonsense could impact her in a negative way. Her off-court Life was sure to interfere with her performace level. Visions of Raducanu, Giorgi, Bouchard come to mind. The Final yesterday was a weird case of polar-opposites. Sabalenka and Rybakina could not be any more different in personalities! Saba often portrays a somewhat fake persona, including her Phony Screaming. Her usual habit of acting like the nice girl with a sense of humor is a misconception. People take her lack of intellect as "cute" and "funny". So anyway... yesterday viewers witnessed that Fake Scream be reduced to a whimper and sometimes no vocal gymnastics at all once she knew the jig was up. We all saw her look into the camera post-match and say "F... You". Also, pretty hard to not see Saba making untoward facial expressions, rolling her eyes, etc., behind Rybakina while on the podium. Elena Rybakina, on the other hand, was her usual 'in-control' self as she spoke clearly and calmly, without making faces nor any ill-will toward anyone = 100% Class Act. Lena appeared more than aware of Saba's sour attitude and made a point of not looking in her direction most of the time. FWIW: I have never -- not ever -- heard Sabalenka make any sounds on practice courts. So it is indeed a nonsensical ruse as she thinks (incorrectly) it affects opponents. It does not. In fact, as was the case yesterday, I saw Lena occasionally take a side-eye glance at Saba on her way to the bench... as if to calculate her emotions. Saba is actually a very easy 'read'.mandoist13-09-2026
- WTA really, really hates this sort of thing. They surely are satisfied to make believe no such thing happens (or happened).mandoist13-09-2026
Loading
