Mirra Andreeva did not stride into 2026 announcing herself. She edged in, breathless but standing, the kind of opening-night win that says more about survival than sparkle.
A 4:6, 6:1, 6:2 escape against Olivia Gadecki at the Brisbane International was hardly flawless, yet after a brittle end to 2025 it was precisely the sort of start Andreeva craved — messy, earned, and reassuringly real.
A Slow Start, Then Solutions
The match unfolded in chapters rather than a straight line. Gadecki’s early aggression rattled Andreeva, who found herself rushed and reactive through the first set.
“At the beginning I felt like she was just going full on every shot,” Andreeva admitted. “She was very aggressive and pushing me to the limits. I haven’t played for a long time, so I was struggling.”
Mirra Andreeva vs Olivia Gadecki – Set One Stats, Jan 7, 2026 – Brisbane International
| Statistic | Andreeva | Gadecki |
|---|---|---|
| Dominance Ratio | 0.85 | 1.18 |
| Serve Rating | 234 | 277 |
| Aces | 3 | 1 |
| Double Faults | 3 | 1 |
| 1st Serve % | 70% (21/30) | 67% (20/30) |
| 1st Serve Points Won | 62% (13/21) | 60% (12/20) |
| 2nd Serve Points Won | 42% (5/12) | 70% (7/10) |
| Break Points Saved | 67% (4/6) | 67% (2/3) |
| Service Games | 60% (3/5) | 80% (4/5) |
| Ace % | 10% | 3.3% |
| Double Fault % | 10% | 3.3% |
| Return Rating | 123 | 169 |
| 1st Return Points Won | 40% (8/20) | 38% (8/21) |
| 2nd Return Points Won | 30% (3/10) | 58% (7/12) |
| Break Points Won | 33% (1/3) | 33% (2/6) |
| Return Games | 20% (1/5) | 40% (2/5) |
| Pressure Points | 56% (5/9) | 44% (4/9) |
| Service Points | 57% (17/30) | 63% (19/30) |
| Return Points | 37% (11/30) | 43% (13/30) |
| Total Points | 47% (28/60) | 53% (32/60) |
| Max Points In A Row | 5 | 5 |
| Match Points Saved | 0 | 0 |
| Total Games | 40% (4/10) | 60% (6/10) |
| Max Games In A Row | 2 | 3 |
| Set One Duration | 0h 43m | |
A brief bathroom break became a reset, both mentally and tactically. Andreeva returned calmer, clearer, and gradually flipped the pressure.
“I tried to break the rhythm, stay calm and just play my game,” she said. “Then point by point I tried to stay in the match.”
From there, the dynamic shifted. Andreeva took time away from Gadecki, leaned into her own offense, and ran away with the decider.
“At the end it was working for me,” she said. “I stayed aggressive and didn’t give her time to do what she wanted.”
Mirra Andreeva vs Olivia Gadecki – Set Two Stats
| Statistic | Andreeva | Gadecki |
|---|---|---|
| Dominance Ratio | 1.65 | 0.60 |
| Serve Rating | 277 | 206 |
| Aces | 1 | 0 |
| Double Faults | 2 | 0 |
| 1st Serve % | 64% (16/25) | 71% (12/17) |
| 1st Serve Points Won | 100% (16/16) | 42% (5/12) |
| 2nd Serve Points Won | 14% (1/7) | 60% (3/5) |
| Break Points Saved | 100% (2/2) | 50% (2/4) |
| Service Games | 100% (4/4) | 33% (1/3) |
| Ace % | 4% | 0% |
| Double Fault % | 8% | 0% |
| Return Rating | 215 | 86 |
| 1st Return Points Won | 58% (7/12) | 0% (0/16) |
| 2nd Return Points Won | 40% (2/5) | 86% (6/7) |
| Break Points Won | 50% (2/4) | 0% (0/2) |
| Return Games | 67% (2/3) | 0% (0/4) |
| Pressure Points | 67% (4/6) | 33% (2/6) |
| Service Points | 68% (17/25) | 47% (8/17) |
| Return Points | 53% (9/17) | 32% (8/25) |
| Total Points | 62% (26/42) | 38% (16/42) |
| Max Points In A Row | 6 | 4 |
| Match Points Saved | 0 | 0 |
| Total Games | 86% (6/7) | 14% (1/7) |
| Max Games In A Row | 5 | 1 |
| Set 2 Duration | 0h 35m | |
She now faces Linda Noskova who fought back from a set down against Magda Linette with a quarterfinal spot on the line — a more exacting test, but one she meets with momentum rather than doubt.
Starting Over After a Heavy Finish
The relief was palpable. After such a strong start to 2025 faded into a subdued finish, Andreeva was not hunting statements in Brisbane. She was hunting a win.
“It’s never easy to start the season,” she said. “I’m just happy that I won today and started the season in a positive way.”
That simplicity felt deliberate. Brisbane was not about form lines or forecasts, just about putting a tick next to the first match of the year.
When Expectation Becomes a Weight
Despite her age, Andreeva already lives with the assumptions of a finished product. She traces the beginning of that pressure back to her breakthrough run in Dubai.
“After my title in Dubai — and probably even before — I felt very down,” she said. “I thought, this is obviously not going to be the tournament I win.”
Ironically, that absence of expectation unlocked her.
“Because I didn’t expect much from myself, I started to play good,” she said. “Then I started to believe in myself, and that’s how I won the tournament.”
What followed was a different challenge: the noise.
“After I won two tournaments, I felt people expected me to win Miami, then Madrid and Rome,” she said. “That’s basically almost impossible.”
The past season became an education in filtering that noise out.
“I learned a lot about how to deal with pressure and not pay attention to what people say,” she explained. “Now I feel like I know more about it. If it happens again this year, I know how to deal with it.”
Perspective Passed On
Those lessons shaped her advice to Australian teenager Emerson Jones, already burdened with Ash Barty comparisons.
“There will be many people saying, ‘You will be the next Sharapova’ or ‘the next Ash Barty,’” Andreeva said. “You just have to focus on being yourself.”
She was blunt about the futility of labels.
“I am Mirra Andreeva. She is Emerson Jones,” she said. “She will not be the next Ash Barty. Ash Barty finished her career.”
After practicing together, Andreeva praised Jones’ aggression and ball-striking, but resisted inflating expectations.
“She is very thin and very small, but she hits pretty hard,” she said. “She already plays well and wins matches on the WTA Tour.”
Redefining Success, Without Losing Ambition
Andreeva does not hide her ambition. The names she grew up admiring still loom large.
“I always wanted to be like Roger, like Serena, like Rafa,” she said. “I still want that. I want to be the best player in the world.”
What has changed is the framing.
“For some people, a successful career is staying healthy or enjoying every match,” she said. “For someone else, if I don’t win 10 Grand Slams, I’m a loser.”
This season, she is choosing balance.
“If I give my best in every match and enjoy the moment, then I just play and see what life brings me,” she said. “I won’t put so much pressure on myself to think I have to win a Grand Slam to be successful.”
Brisbane offered no grand conclusions — just a reminder that progress can still begin with a grind.
“I decided to think like this this year and see where it brings me,” Andreeva said. “Then we talk about it next year.”
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