Later,
Andreeva stepped onto the court for the women’s singles, where she defeated
Paolini 6-4, once again putting her team in the lead. Both Sabalenka and
Andreeva have won all the matches they’ve played so far (3 doubles, 2 singles
for Aryna, and 1 singles for Mirra).
Undoubtedly,
for a player like Andreeva, just 17 years old, partnering with world No. 1 and
3-time Grand Slam champion Sabalenka is a huge learning opportunity. The
teenage world No. 16 was asked after her win over Paolini if she had learned
anything from Sabalenka during the week.
“I want to
ask if you learned anything about her game, particularly on the court this
week?”
“I think
I’ve learned some dance moves,” Andreeva replied with a smile. “Well, I don’t
know. Nothing?” she laughed. “I don’t wanna say anything bad, but she’s good at
dancing, so that’s what I’m learning right now, maybe if we spent a bit more
time together,” she added.
At that
moment, Aryna Sabalenka appeared on camera, interrupting the interview: “What
was that about?” the 26-year-old player said laughing.
“She (Andreeva) said
you’re a great dancer, and she’s really impressed by the moves,” the
interviewer commented.
“Isn’t this
what teenagers do these days?” Sabalenka joked, performing a TikTok dance while
laughing, before returning to the bench and leaving Andreeva alone again.
“What do
you think?” the interviewer asked Andreeva once Sabalenka was off-camera.
“Well, that
was not so good, to be honest, but it’s OK… she could do better,” the Russian
teenager replied sarcastically, sparking laughter from the crowd and Sabalenka,
who continued to watch the interview from the sidelines.
Team Hawks
secured a spot in the World Tennis League final as the second seed, trailing
behind the Falcons. Led by Aryna Sabalenka and Mirra Andreeva, the Hawks also
feature Jordan Thompson and Sumit Nagal. Their upcoming rivals, the Falcons,
boast a strong lineup with Elena Rybakina, Caroline Garcia, Andrey Rublev, and
Denis Shapovalov.