Mirra Andreeva says she surprised herself with her nerveless performance after beating Jessica Pegula to become the youngest player in 22 years to reach the WTA Finals showpiece.
French Open champion Andreeva came back from a straight-sets defeat to win 6-3 6-4 in Indian Wells, California.
The 19-year-old Russian is the youngest finalist at the season-ending event since Maria Sharapova, who was 17 when she won the title in 2004.
The victory against American Pegula guarantees that Andreeva will finish the year ranked second in the world.
“I didn’t feel any pressure today, I don’t know why,” Andreeva told Sky Sports.
“Usually I feel like on those big points or when I have to close the match or the set, I’m so tight.
“But for some reason today I was just playing. I wasn’t thinking about anything, I was just trying to enjoy.”
Tournament debutant Andreeva has yet to lose a set and has not lost more than four games in any of her eight sets.
The 18 matches she lost were the fewest by a WTA Finals finalist since the round-robin format was introduced in 2003.
Under the leadership of coach Conchita Martinez, Andreeva turned her serve into a real weapon.
She won 77% of the points behind her first serve and hit 17 winners to surpass Pegula.
Andreeva also showed impressive composure, remaining unfazed despite an early defeat in both sets against the local favorite.
She will face Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova or 2019 WTA Finals champion Elina Svitolina in Sunday’s final.
Gn sports
