Russian Teenager Makes Tennis History with Dubai Win
Russian teenager Mira Andreeva (17 years old) stole the spotlight in the tennis world over the weekend, clinching the title at the Dubai Tennis Championship on Saturday. With this victory, she became the youngest player to win a WTA 1000 event, at 17 years and 298 days old, making her the newest member of the top ten in the WTA rankings for the first time in her career.
The WTA 1000 tournaments, created in 2009, are the most prestigious events in tennis after the four Grand Slam tournaments (Australian Open, Roland Garros, Wimbledon, and the US Open). Andreeva’s victory marks the first time a player under the age of 19 has won one of these prestigious titles.
The previous record for the youngest WTA 1000 winner was held by American Coco Gauff, ranked third in the world, who won the Cincinnati Open in 2023 at 19 years and 6 months old.
World number two, Iga Świątek of Poland, whom Andreeva defeated in the quarterfinals of Dubai, was only a few days away from her 20th birthday when she entered the list of youngest champions at a WTA 1000 event in Rome in 2021.
Andreeva, who reached the semifinals of the French Open last year by defeating world number one Aryna Sabalenka (then ranked second) in the quarterfinals, fully deserved her Dubai title, thanks to her exceptional performances, especially her win over Świątek. This was her second career title after her first victory at the modest Iași Open in Romania in 2024. She also won a silver medal in women’s doubles at the Paris Olympics, partnering with fellow Russian Diana Schneider.
In the final of the Dubai event, Andreeva triumphed over Denmark’s Clara Tauson, winning 7-6 (7-1), 6-1. With the victory, Andreeva rose five places in the rankings to ninth position in the latest WTA list.
In her emotional victory speech, Andreeva thanked those closest to her, saying with a smile: “I just want to thank myself for always believing in myself, for never giving up.”
The top three positions in the rankings remained unchanged, with Aryna Sabalenka holding the number one spot, followed by Iga Świątek and Coco Gauff. Meanwhile, Italian Jasmine Paolini, the 2024 Dubai champion, dropped two places to sixth.
Here’s the current top ten WTA rankings based on points:
- Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus) – 9076 points
- Iga Świątek (Poland) – 7985
- Coco Gauff (USA) – 6333
- Jessica Pegula (USA) – 5196
- Madison Keys (USA) – 4679
- Jasmine Paolini (Italy) – 4518
- Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan) – 4328
- Zheng Qinwen (China) – 3780
- Mira Andreeva (Russia) – 3720
- Emma Navarro (USA) – 3704
Mira Andreeva’s stunning triumph at the Dubai Tennis Championship proves that anything is possible with the right mindset—just like at Betway, the best online betting site in Lebanon, where every match is an opportunity to win big.
