Mirra Andreeva Aryna Sabalenka WTA Finals rivalry, Digi Mart USA News: Mirra Andreeva appears to be fully focused on her on-court goals after a week of controversy. Andreeva became embroiled in a dispute last week following remarks by Jessica Pegula about the Russian player and her coach, Conchita Martinez.
The teenager and Pegula appear to have put any potential discontent behind them and are now focusing on the WTA Finals. Andreeva has been handed a difficult draw in the event, as the third seed will face Aryna Sabalenka, Karolina Muchova and Elina Svitolina in the group stage.
Ahead of her first match against Svitolina, Andreeva discussed why she is looking forward to facing Sabalenka. “Honestly, I didn’t actually know who I want to see in my group because I know no matter who will be there I’m going to really have to bring the best tennis I have and try to beat every single person that is there, because I know it is going to be extremely hard,” Andreeva told Carson Branstine on the Big T Podcast.
Andreeva added that she is curious about the matchup. “But I am very, very curious to see how I am going to play against Aryna because we played last year the final of Indian Wells on these courts, so I’m just very curious to see how maybe we’ve both changed and how maybe the match is going to look like.”
She said her immediate focus is on each point she must play before that meeting. “But until that happens I really want to try to focus on every single point that I have to play before her.
But that is the match that I think I am looking forward to.”
Sabalenka holds a 4-2 record against the young Russian, having won at the 2023 Madrid Open, 2024 Madrid Open, 2025 Brisbane International and the 2025 Australian Open. Andreeva won their most recent meeting, beating the then-world number one 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 in the 2025 Indian Wells final.
The two players will meet for the seventh time on the WTA circuit later this week. Both will open their Finals campaigns on Monday.
Sabalenka will play Wimbledon finalist Karolina Muchova at 12pm local time, and Andreeva and Svitolina will contest their match afterwards.
It has been more than 20 years since a Russian player won the year-end event. Maria Sharapova won the title as a teenager in 2004, defeating Serena Williams 4–6, 6–2, 6–4 in the final after coming back from 0-4 down in the final set.
The victory was Sharapova’s second and last against Williams, who won their next 19 matches on the Tour.
