Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer were the three more dominant tennis players of the past 20 years, alongside Serena Williams. So, it’s not surprising that the new generation of tennis players have them as their inspiration. Current world No. 9 Mirra Andreeva has shared which one is the “number one” and her biggest idol.
The Russian youngster had expressed her love for Federer, winner of 20 Grand Slams, on several occasions. In 2024, she was asked on Instagram who was her favorite player, and replied: “Roger Federer has always been number 1.” Most recently, she shared she has been watching videos of the Swiss Maestro to hype herself, as well as from other sports stars.
“Well, when I want to motivate or inspire myself, I’m watching some of LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, and of course my idol since I was very, very young was Roger Federer,” Andreeva told the press. “Before the matches I’ve been watching highlights of him playing the final of the Australian Open in 2017 against Nadal.”
“I was like, damn, how can he play like this? This is something extraordinary. How can a person just look good? First, play like, not that he doesn’t care, but play like everything is great even though he’s losing 1-6, 3-6, it’s the fifth set. I knew he was losing 1-3 in the fifth. How can you just look good, play amazing, then in the end win the Slam?” she explained.
Roger Federer at the 2017 Australian Open final (Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
“Yeah, I’ve been watching a lot of Federer videos and some speeches,” she said. However, she doesn’t leave out other stars. “Of course, some as well of Nadal, [Andy] Murray and Djokovic. I love those tennis idols that are idols to everyone,” she added.
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Andreeva, the rising star of the WTA
Andreeva claimed victory over Danish standout Clara Tauson in a hard-hitting final, securing a 7-6(1), 6-1 win. At 17, she became the youngest player to capture a WTA 1000 title, defeating Grand Slam champions Marketa Vondrousova, Iga Swiatek, and Elena Rybakina along the way.
Apart from that victory, Andreeva has already reached the semifinals of the French Open (2024), and won the silver medal at the Paris Olympics. While her career is barely starting, she has everything to become one of the biggest champions, just as her idol.
