Mirra and Erika Andreeva will face off for the first time as professionals in the second round of the Dongfeng Voyah · Wuhan Open after both sisters secured victories in their opening matches.
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On Monday, No.70-ranked lucky loser Erika, 20, came from 5-2 down in the first set and 4-2 down in the second to defeat Dayana Yastremska 7-5, 6-4. She saved two set points in the opening set en route to her first victory in three meetings over the Australian Open semifinalist.
No.16 seed Mirra, 17, held up her end of the deal on Tuesday with a 7-6(5), 6-3 win over home wild card Wang Xiyu. The teenager rose to the occasion in the most important moments, coming up with fine net play to edge the tiebreak while Wang contributed two double faults. Having been stymied on her first six break points of the contest, Mirra also found a precise backhand winner down the line to seal the only break of the match in the second set.
Afterward, Mirra was apprehensive about the prospect of competing against her sister.
“It will be like a nightmare to play against her,” she said. “It will be a pretty weird match. She will know what I will do on the court, and I know what she does. I think it’s going to be fun for the people who are watching, but really stressful for the both of us.”
The Andreevas will become the third set of sisters to face each other in a WTA main draw in the past 10 years. The last such meeting came in the second round of Lexington 2020, the 31st and final installment of the rivalry between Serena and Venus Williams. Serena won 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 and led the final head-to-head record 19-12.
Czech twins Karolina and Kristyna also played each other 10 times at professional level, with five wins apiece — but Kristyna won their only match in a main draw 6-2, 3-6, 7-6(7) in the 2019 Birmingham second round.
Both Erika and Mirra were top juniors — Erika was the 2021 Roland Garros girls’ runner-up, and Mirra the girls’ finalist at the 2023 Australian Open — but Mirra has streaked ahead since transitioning to the pro game. This week, she made her Top 20 debut in the PIF WTA Rankings after reaching the Beijing quarterfinals, becoming the youngest player to be ranked in the Top 20 since Nicole Vaidisova in 2006.
However, the older sister has maintained a firm grip of the rivalry on court. Erika has yet to lose a set in practice to Mirra.
“We practiced a lot when we were younger and of course she would always beat…