(Reuters) – Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva fought back to overcome world number one Aryna Sabalenka 2-6 6-4 6-3 in the Indian Wells final on Sunday, winning a second WTA 1000-level event in a row to keep her charmed year on track.
The 17-year-old Andreeva, the youngest women’s finalist at the tournament in 24 years, had found her form midway through the match and crumpled to the ground in celebration after closing it out with a forehand winner.
Top seed Sabalenka got herself out of a slump to bring some of her best tennis to the California desert this year but her form unravelled in the final and she was left to rue missed opportunities.
Andreeva had lost to Sabalenka twice this year and it looked as though the pattern would repeat itself as the hard-hitting Belarusian sent a backhand winner down the line on break point in the fourth game.
A visibly frustrated Andreeva sent a shot into the net on break point in the eighth but regained her poise in the second set, where she broke Sabalenka with a forehand winner in the third game and fended off two break points in the sixth.
After trading breaks to open the third set, Sabalenka’s errors began to pile up and she fired into the net on break point in the third game to give the ninth-seeded Russian the advantage.
(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York; Editing by Ken Ferris)
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