Andy Murray defends Mirra Andreeva after commentator questions her grit: "Maybe she turned the match round is because of her mental strength?"

Andy Murray praised Mirra Andreeva after she showed grit to dig herself out of trouble at the 2024 Australian Open.

On Friday, January 19, Andreeva faced Diane Parry in the third round at the Melbourne Major. She came back from 5-1 down in the final set, saving a match point along the way, to beat the Frenchwoman 1-6, 6-1, 7-6(5).

During the third set, with the 16-year-old one point away from getting knocked out, a commentator on the broadcast opined that the Russian needed to get stronger mentally. After Andreeva successfully staged a comeback, former World No. 1 Murray took to social media to defend the youngster and called her a winner.

"Andreeva down 5-1 in third. Commentator “she really needs to work on mental side of her game.. she’s too hard on herself when she’s losing”. 30 minutes later 7-6 Andreeva wins. Maybe the reason she turned the match round is because of her mental strength. Maybe she turned the match around because she is hard on herself and demands more of herself when she’s losing/playing badly? Winner," he said in a post on X (formerly Twitter)

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Mirra Andreeva: "When you're coming back from this score, it's kind of easy on the mental side for you"

Mirra Andreeva in action at the 2024 Australian Open.

Mirra Andreeva's best result at a Grand Slam came at the Wimbledon Championships last year when she reached the fourth round before losing to Madison Keys.

The teenager matched that run at the Australian Open 2024 after beating Diane Parry. In doing so, she has become just the fourth player in the last 30 years (after Martina Hingis, Tatiana Golovin, and Coco Gauff) to reach the fourth round at both Majors before turning 17.

Speaking about her comeback against Parry, Andreeva opined that her opponent was under more mental pressure than her when the Russian was 5-1 down.

"I feel like when you're coming back from this score, it's kind of easy on a mental side for you. It's easier than for your opponent, for sure, because you're on the run, you're having all the adrenaline. That's what I had today," she said at a press conference.

With a place in her first Grand Slam quarterfinals on the line, Andreeva will next face either ninth seed Barbora Krejcikova or Australian qualifier Storm Hunter.