Article by Daniel Grigore – Published Friday, January 23, 2026, 3:27 p.m. / Updated Friday, January 23, 2026, 3:28 p.m.
For the third time, Mirra Andreeva (18 years old) qualified for the 4th round at the Australian Open, this time after eliminated Gabriela Rusethe last representative of Romania left in the competition.
Ruse lost in two sets to the world number 7, score 3-6, 4-6, but managed to cause problems for the Russian in some places.
Andreeva overcame all the difficult moments and qualified for the fourth round of the Australian Open for the third time, this before she turned 19 years old. Next, she will face Elina Svitolina for qualification in the quarters.
After the match, the Russian admitted that she was afraid of the late hour at which this match took place. The match started at 13:25 Romanian time, 10.25pm in Melbourne.
Mirra Andreeva, after eliminating Gabriela Ruse: “That was the plan”
Asked what it's like to tick off a new qualification in the 4th round, Andreeva answered:
“It feels very special, even though I was a bit nervous to play so late. The atmosphere was amazing. Thank you for staying so late. Maybe many of you want to go home to sleep already, but thank you for staying and supporting me tonight.”
Regarding the match against Gabrielathe Russian explained with what game plan she approached this duel:
“I knew he likes to play aggressively, that he hits hard. The plan was to neutralize his shots and delay the game. He started well, maintained his level throughout.
I am very happy that I won today, especially because at the end I had some emotions. I had started playing passively, but I forced myself to take a little risk, even if it wasn't until the last few games. It's something that makes me happy.”
According to the statisticians at Opta, Andreeva is the first player in the 21st century to advance to the fourth round of the Australian Open in all of her first 3 main draw appearances. The last time Venus Williams did it was in 1998, 1999 and 2001.
For reaching the 3rd round, Gabriela Ruse will be rewarded with 327,750 Australian dollars, the equivalent of about 191,000 euros.
I am very proud of myself and grateful. I'm learning how to appreciate myself more, give myself more credit, not just my team, because I'm also accomplishing things on the field.
– Mirra Andreeva
