The end of last season didn’t go as planned for Mirra Andreeva, but Monday night’s comeback opening-round win at Australian Open 2026 against Donna Vekic added to her recent momentum.
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The Adelaide International winner told reporters on Sunday in her pre-tournament briefing that she was a different person compared to late last season on the Asian swing, when the tears came as matches – and a place at the WTA Finals – slipped away.
But as proof of the new mindset she discussed, the still only 18-year-old downed a fading Vekic 4-6 6-3 6-0 on Monday.
“We’ve been trying for me to stay focused sticking to the plan and doing what I have to do on the court,” Andreeva said in her on-court interview.
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“Sometimes it’s more difficult, and sometimes there are days when it’s just harder to do that. Now I realise that it really depends on how much I want to do it.
“Now so far I found the mindset of, it doesn’t matter what’s going on on the court, just still go for my shots and try to be brave.”
Oh, having a puppy, she added, has made her more calm both on and off the court.
It was Andreeva’s second comeback victory over the Croatian – and perhaps more crucially, snapped a six-match losing skid at majors when conceding the first set.
Doing it against Vekic could be even more meaningful. Despite the world No.70 ending last term at her lowest ranking in nine years, Vekic is an Olympic silver medallist and Grand Slam semifinalist known for her grittiness.
No wonder the contest was billed as a first-round blockbuster.
Things began in Andreeva’s favour.
If Venus Williams and Olga Danilovic contested what is likely to go down as one of the games of the tournament on Day 1 – a lengthy duel at 4-4 in the final set – a shorter game played by Andreeva at 1-1 in the first could also linger.
It was pure magic. A disguised forehand drop shot off a high ball made it 15-0. On the next point, a forehand swipe to defend eventually led to a backhand angled winner. At 30-0, she authored an incredible forehand crosscourt volley winner – from the baseline.
How did Andreeva seal the game? By chasing a short ball and engineering a wonderful slice down the line.
Andreeva surged for a 3-1 lead, but was broken back straight away. But not capitalising on two break-back opportunities at 3-2 cost her.
Vekic’s forehand firepower made all the difference in the opening set – striking nine forehand groundstroke winners to just two for Andreeva.
Andreeva hung in there in the second set, although Vekic might rue not taking advantage of an opening on the Andreeva serve at 2-2, 0-15.
Vekic eventually struck double the unforced errors to winners in the set and her forehand winner count shrunk to one. Andreeva, meanwhile, raised her first serve percentage by a sizable 20 per cent.
As Vekic took a bathroom break prior to the third, Andreeva sought guidance from her Grand Slam-winning coach Conchita Martinez.
Rather than an unforgettable climax, however, the third set lasted a mere 29 minutes.
The first game unsettled Vekic. She found herself at 0-40 on serve, but then clawed back to deuce. However, two unforced errors handed the game to Andreeva, who shook her fist in jubilation.
Vekic won just four more points for the rest of the match as she leaked unforced errors, her hopes of pulling off a second top 10 win at a Grand Slam fading.
Andreeva followed fellow teens Victoria Mboko – who she downed in the final in Adelaide on Saturday – and Hobart finalist Iva Jovic in clearing the first hurdle at AO 2026.
She earned a clash with another tour veteran whose ranking has dropped but is ever dangerous, Maria Sakkari, in round two.