Mirra Andreeva turned a one-sided rivalry around on Thursday, beating Ekaterina Alexandrova 7-6(4), 7-6(3) to reach the 2026 China Open semifinals in Beijing. The result marked one of the tightest scores of the quarterfinal round, and Andreeva's first win in three career WTA meetings with the Russian veteran.
But victory didn't come easily for the young star.
Andreeva Powers Through Tiebreakers to Seal the Win in Beijing
Tiebreakers decided both sets though Andreeva raced to a 4-1 lead in the second, serving for the match at 5-3. But Alexandrova clawed her way back to force another must-win contest. With the breaker knotted at 2-2, Andreeva settled in, landing a forehand winner before taking five of the final six points to seal it in one hour and 53 minutes.
"She played unbelievable today, and I'm very happy to get my very first win against her," Andreeva said. "I could have played more aggressive, but what a match this was. I'm super happy with how it went."
At just 19 years old, Andreeva becomes the youngest China Open semifinalist since Ágnes Szávay in 2007.
Thursday's win also gave her a fourth career WTA 1000 semifinal appearance, a milestone only Coco Gauff has topped as a teenager.
