Mirra Andreeva blown away by Roger Federer's composure when watching his old videos for inspiration - "How can a person just look good?"

Tuesday, 25 February 2025 at 06:30

Russian tennis sensation Mirra Andreeva won the biggest title of her career at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships last weekend, and the teenager credited some of her winning mindset to watching videos of her idol, Roger Federer.

Andreeva defeated Danish star Clara Tauson in a big-hitting final, recording an impressive 7-6(1) 6-1 victory in one hour and 46 minutes. The 17-year old became the youngest player to win a WTA 1000 title, defeating Grand Slam champions Marketa Vondrousova, Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina en route to the title. Following her victory, Andreeva has risen to a career-high ranking of World No.9.

Seeing Federer stay calm under pressure helps motivate her, says Andreeva

During her post-match press conference, Andreeva spoke on sport stars whom she looks to for inspiration. In addition to NBA superstar LeBron James, Andreeva also credited Federer for giving her the motivation to keep fighting.

"Well, when I want to motivate or inspire myself, I’m watching some of LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, and of course my idol since I was very, very young was Roger Federer,” said Andreeva. “Before the matches I’ve been watching highlights of him playing finals of the Australian Open in 2017 against [Rafael] Nadal.
“Before the match, I was watching some highlights. I was like, damn, how can he play like this? This is something extraordinary. “How can a person just look good first, play like not that he doesn’t care, but play like everything is great even though he’s losing 1-6, 3-6, it’s the fifth set. I knew he was losing 1-3 in the fifth. How can you just look good, play amazing, then in the end win the Slam?
“Yeah, I’ve been watching a lot of Federer videos and some speeches. Of course, some as well of Nadal, [Andy] Murray and [Novak] Djokovic. I love those tennis idols that are idols to everyone. Mostly I would say I’m watching tennis. I would say I watch tennis more than basketball or football or whatever."

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Arthur Ajayi

Growing up in a household where soccer was king, my earliest memories are filled with chants from packed stadiums and the rhythm of a ball being passed across neighborhood streets. But somewhere along the way, the quiet elegance and raw emotion of tennis pulled me in. What began as a curiosity became a lifelong passion; not just for the sport itself, but for the stories it tells: of grit, of heartbreak, of improbable comebacks and human resilience.

As a tennis writer, I bring the observational lens of someone who didn’t grow up in the sport, but fell in love with it as an outsider; a perspective that lets me see both its technical beauty and its emotional depth. Over the years working with TennisUpToDate, I’ve had the privilege of reaching more than 3.5 million readers worldwide, with one of my features ranking among the site’s top three articles.

With a background in storytelling and a creative mind always searching for meaning beyond the scoreboard, I aim to craft narratives that go deeper than results and rankings. Whether it’s a rising star breaking through or a veteran fighting off Father Time, I try to capture the heartbeat behind the headlines.

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