Russian teenager Mira Andreeva reached her second French Open semi-final by defeating Romanian veteran Sorana Cristea 6-0, 6-3 under closed doors at the Court Philippe-Chatrier on Tuesday. The 19-year-old, seeded eighth, needed just 56 minutes to book her place in the last four, cementing her position as a major contender for a maiden Grand Slam title.

With this win Andreeva achieved her 19th match win at Roland Garros. The milestone catapulted her into the record books, setting a new benchmark for the most women’s singles match wins at the French Open by a teenager in the 21st century.

Andreeva previously reached the semi-final stage in Paris in 2024 at the age of 17.

snoop dogg mantra

Beyond her record-breaking tennis, Andreeva charmed the Paris crowd by explaining the viral post-match tradition of thanking herself along with her team and fans during trophy presentations. The teenager revealed that the ritual was lifted directly from American rap icon Snoop Dogg’s famous Hollywood Walk of Fame speech.

“At first, when I said it in a speech, I saw Snoop Dogg say it when he was receiving an award,” Andreeva said during her on-court interview.

“So the first few times, I stole it to make a joke. But then I realized it’s really true. We have to thank ourselves for the work we do on the court, how much we sacrifice, how much we practice and how much we put in.”

strategic dominance

It was in the quarter-finals that the young Russian demonstrated tireless accuracy. Andreeva completed the opening set in just 24 minutes, leaving the 36-year-old Cirstea, playing her final season on the tour, desperately searching for momentum. Andreeva consistently punished weak balls and converted six break points throughout the match.

Cristea offered tentative resistance in the second set and earned an early break to draw at 3-3. However, Andreeva reasserted her dominance and took the match by breaking the Romanian twice.

When asked if her exceptional court vision was a learned trait, Andreeva indicated that it was largely innate.

She commented, “From a very young age I felt like I was studying the game.” “I never knew it was anything special.”

Andreeva dominated the power game and hit her first serve at will, while Cirstea struggled on her second serve, earning less than 20 percent of her points.

Andreeva will face Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk in the semi-finals. Marta defeated compatriot Elina Svitolina in three sets in the second women’s singles quarterfinal on Tuesday.

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