THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

July 5, 2025

Mirra Andreeva

Press Conference

M. ANDREEVA/H. Baptiste

6-1, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Mirra, nice win today. Give us your thoughts on the match this afternoon.

MIRRA ANDREEVA: Yeah, I felt like I was playing great. I knew that the match is going to be tough because I felt like she was playing super free and she was going for her shots.

My goal for the match was just to stay focused and also be aggressive. So I'm super happy with my level today.

THE MODERATOR: You said after last presser that you maybe overused your forehand slice. Do you think you struck the right balance today?

MIRRA ANDREEVA: Yeah, I think that today I probably found a good balance between slicing and changing the rhythm with the forehand slice. But also I felt like when I had time I just was using my forehand. I felt like it was giving me a lot of benefits.

I felt like when I had time, I was just going for my shot. It brought me a lot of also maybe free points or points when I just got an easier ball to finish after.

Yeah, I felt like today was a better balance for me.

Q. When you see a lot of top seeds losing in the first couple of rounds, you go through the draw and play such a tough opponent, is it something that during the match you think about? Are you afraid of a snowball effect?

MIRRA ANDREEVA: I feel like obviously it's not really nice to see a lot of top players lose in first and second rounds. But it's tennis. Sometimes it can happen. There's nothing you can do about it.

Me, I was just trying to focus on myself. I didn't have a thought that, I don't know, maybe it's like a curse or something, that it can go after me. So I was just focusing on myself, focusing on what I have to do on the court. That's what I'm going to focus on until the end of the tournament. I'm just going to try and be the best version of myself every match I play.

Q. Hailey's game is a little bit of a throwback style. Your coach knows all about that. What advice did Conchita give you?

MIRRA ANDREEVA: Yeah, basically she just told me to really stay focused and not to rush, like take your time and be patient. Yeah, as soon as you get a more comfortable ball, just go for it and do whatever you want. If you feel like attacking down the line, go down the line. If you feel like attacking cross, go cross.

Yeah, basically she just told me be patient because she's going cut the rhythm a lot. Sometimes she's going to go for an amazing shot. Also, like, yeah, be calm and accept that sometimes things can go her way and things can go wrong.

So yeah, my goal for today was also be patient, but also at the same time when I have a chance to step in and be aggressive.

Q. Do you after matches go on YouTube and watch the highlights? What do you think of those highlights? Do they give an accurate reflection of the match? Do you watch and you're like, I don't remember playing like that?

MIRRA ANDREEVA: I can say before I used to do that. Before, like, every match I won I used to go on YouTube and search for some highlights to see how nice I played today, kind of remember what was I going through during the match.

Lately I can say that I stopped doing it because I felt like, well, I don't see the reason. Why would I watch the highlights of the match? Sometimes it's good to see how you played when you lost the match so you can learn on your mistakes and to see what you did wrong, what you could have done better. But I feel like when you win, you played a match, you won. Okay, you talked to your coach. Okay, that's it. You're happy. But then after you still have to focus on your next match.

Lately I can say that I don't watch the matches that I win.

Q. When you did, did they give an accurate reflection of the match generally?

MIRRA ANDREEVA: Honestly, I don't really know. I feel like most of the times, yes. I remember I think last time I watched it was after probably US Open or Beijing last year. I remember, like, one crazy point. I was like, Okay, for sure it's going to be in highlights. I'm like, What? After I didn't see it in highlights. I'm like, Oh, no, this is almost one of the best shots that I've hit during the match and they didn't put it into highlights. I was a bit disappointed.

In their defense, they put a lot of great shots from the match also. Yeah, I feel like sometimes it also tough to choose all of the great shots and to put them into one short video. Yeah, I think that most of the times they do a good job.

Q. Your coach is a former Wimbledon champion. She also coached Garbine Muguruza. Where do you feel the biggest improvement she has made on your grass game? How important is that experience going into the second week?

MIRRA ANDREEVA: I can for sure say that she gave me more confidence because when I arrived to London after my loss in Bod Hamburg, and also after my loss in Berlin, I didn't feel super great and super confident with the way I played.

Yeah, we had just a couple of practices, maybe three days of practices. We just really focused on kind of trying to hit a lot of balls and to fix the movement on grass, as well.

I think the first thing she brought back to me is my confidence. Also with step by step I feel like I'm improving my movement on the grass, as well. I also learned how to deal with some tough shots when sometimes, for example, I don't know, a player hits the line, and most of the time the ball doesn't bounce at all, it just bounce up, it doesn't bounce at you. So yeah, I feel like now I'm also starting to learn how to deal with those tricky shots.

Yeah, I feel like with every match I play, we kind of do the analyze. After I feel better and better and more confident in my game.

Q. How hard is it when you know all these other seeds are losing to just focus on yourself and not look ahead in the draw and think, Wow, this is a huge opportunity?

MIRRA ANDREEVA: Honestly, I don't know for which reason, but I didn't think about this. Maybe now I will because of you (smiling).

But yeah, I actually didn't really think about it. I was just, like, focused on just winning matches because last year I lost in the first round singles and doubles. I put all my focus on just trying to win more games and more matches.

When I won my first round, my goal was just to go out there and win my second round, to kind of improve my game and improve my result from last year. I think that's what I've been putting my focus into. That's what I'm going to try to do next. Not to think about anything else.

I can say that so far it's been a bit easier to put my focus into the right place.

Q. We don't know for sure about your next opponent. I'd like to ask you about the two possibilities. What are your thoughts about the challenge of facing Barbora, given her history on this surface and in this place?

MIRRA ANDREEVA: Yeah, obviously she's a great player. She's a two-time Grand Slam champion. I feel like she's feeling pretty confident playing on this surface.

I don't know what is the score right now, but I saw that she was up in the first set. Yeah, we're going to see how the match is going to go. I feel like doesn't matter who I'm going to play, I'm just going to focus on the things that I have to do on the court, the things that are going to help me win matches.

For example, I'm going to try to focus to be aggressive but also patient at the same time. I'm going to just, yeah, doesn't matter who I play, I'm just going to try to be super focused as I was today. I will just try to go for my shots.

My tactics are going to be a little bit different, of course, depends on opponent. But my mindset is always going to be the same.

Q. How would you describe Emma?

MIRRA ANDREEVA: Emma, she's obviously a super athletic player. I really like her as a person. I saw a couple of interviews. We practiced together a couple of times also.

I really like her as a person. I like her as a player, as well. We just played against each other once in Cincinnati last year. We practiced on grass once in Bod Hamburg also. I feel like she's very dangerous opponent on grass, as well.

After I can say that I hope Conchita will do her job good and she's going to give me nice advices and good tactics. We're going to go from there.

Q. Already in your career people say that you have so much insight into the game. Of the other players that you've spoken to or played against, who do you sense are the players who have the greatest insight, knowledge of the game?

MIRRA ANDREEVA: Current players or ex-players?

Q. Either way.

MIRRA ANDREEVA: Well, obviously I have to say Roger. I felt like every time I was watching him I felt like he just knows what to do at every score and every situation that is going on the court. I felt like he was handling the pressure moments. Also he was facing break points. When he was down in the score, his faith didn't change, never.

I felt like this probably was super hard to play against because when you see that you're winning, everything is going your way, just that your opponent, it's like nothing happened. He's just continuing playing the same way and even raising his level. I felt like this could be, like, a really, really hard opponent to face.

From current players, I think obviously Aryna, Coco, Iga, almost all of the top women players, they have the same mentality and the same kind of way to present themselves on court. I feel like a lot of top players, they have that now. That's why it's tough to beat them.

Yeah, I feel like every time I play one player out of, I don't know, top 10 or top 20, it's getting harder obviously because their mindset is also a little bit different.

Q. I would like to know what do you think are the factors that separates the first three from the next five to maintain the status 1, 2, 3?

MIRRA ANDREEVA: Well, I wouldn't know because I'm not top 3 yet, so I cannot share my experience.

What I think is probably that they maybe have more confidence in their game. Probably they're also, I don't know if they're approaching everything more serious or if they have a different mindset when they approach a practice and a match.

I feel like they only have one mindset: to go out there and fight. Doesn't matter if it's a practice or a match, doesn't matter who they play against. I feel like that's what makes them one of the best players in the world. Doesn't matter what's happening or who they play against, they have only one goal. Doesn't matter what's happening. Every next point I play I'm going to fight. You're not going to get the point just like this. You're going to have to really win it.

I think that maybe this could be the case, but I don't know.

Q. I know you've got a busy schedule when you're here. Off the court, what do you do at Wimbledon to keep your mind off the tennis? Anything specific?

MIRRA ANDREEVA: Well, when I come back from the courts, we're living in apartments. I really like the place we're living. We have, like, a nice park around. I think two days ago me and my momma went to the supermarket. We had a little walk. It was like 15- or 20-minutes walk one side. We had a nice walk, nice chat. The weather was great.

When I have some free time I like to walk and talk. If I'm at home, I currently read a book that I just cannot stop reading for some reason. It's just so super interesting that, yeah, every second that I have free I just open my pocketbook and I start to read.

That's what I'm doing. I don't even watch any TV series right now, which is a bit surprising for me. But yeah, the only thing that I'm doing is I'm reading a book.

Q. What book is it?

MIRRA ANDREEVA: I don't know how to translate it in English. Basically it's just about the sci-fantasy about the other world kind of mixed with all of the creatures. They just tell about their life, then they have a war, how they win. All of that. It's like fantasy book that my cousin recommended. Maybe it's a little bit silly. Maybe it's a little bit, I don't know, not for my age, but I like it.

Q. What's the title?

MIRRA ANDREEVA: I have no idea how to translate it. How would you call it? Maybe the 'Weapon of Death' I would say probably (smiling). This sounds silly. Maybe that's how you're going to translate it. I have no idea (laughter).