Mirra Andreeva is 19, won Roland Garros in June, and is already pushing for another major. Yet after grinding past Anastasia Potapova 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 to reach the US Open quarterfinals, she somehow had to correct the interviewer too. She will face Coco Gauff next, but once again the person with the microphone looked less prepared than the player who had just survived three sets.
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The interviewer initially asked Andreeva whether she would rather face Elena Rybakina or Naomi Osaka next, but she immediately knew something was wrong. “I don’t know if I play them. I’m pretty sure I play the winner of Jovic and Gauff,” she said, before adding, “Yeah, I don’t know what you’re saying.” The interviewer then corrected course and asked about Jovic and Gauff instead.
The mix-up was even more bizarre because Elena Rybakina had already crushed Naomi Osaka 6-1, 6-4 to reach the quarterfinals. Rybakina dropped just four points on serve, hit 29 winners and seven aces, while Osaka managed only nine winners. Rybakina will now face Qinwen Zheng, who came back from 5-0 down in the opening set to knock out Iga Swiatek.
Andreeva was hardly the only player forced to clean up someone else’s mistake.
Just a day earlier, Carlos Alcaraz had called out Tennis TV after it turned his cautious Spanish interview into a claim that he “felt capable of winning the tournament.” Alcaraz, who had only recently returned from a four-month wrist injury and had actually stressed how grateful he was just to be healthy and competing again, quickly replied, “I didn’t say that.”
Tennis TV basically put words in Alcaraz’s mouth, turning a careful answer into a cocky title claim he never made.
And with players now having to correct everything from quotes to basic draw information, the frustration around tournament interviews is starting to look like a pattern.
Fans question US Open’s on-court interview standards after another blunder
The frustration did not come entirely out of nowhere. Earlier in the tournament, Elena Rybakina was placed in a similarly awkward position when an interviewer incorrectly told her that she was reaching the US Open fourth round for the first time.
“You’re a two-time Grand Slam champion at Wimbledon at the Australian Open,” the interviewer said. “But this now is your first time in the fourth round of the US Open.”
Rybakina immediately sounded unsure…
“Is it the first one? I’m not sure. What was it last year?” she asked, correctly recalling her run to the fourth round in 2025. The interviewer eventually realized the error. “I’m going to correct myself. It’s your second time in the fourth round. Apologies for that.”
Remembering that moment after witnessing another blunder during Andreeva’s post-match interview, a fan tweeted, “What incompetence same with Rybakina interview! Shame!”
The reactions on social media were hardly sympathetic. Another one wrote, “The post-match interviewers have been pathetic the entire tournament.”
Other than these embarrassing moments featuring Rybakina and Andreeva, even Aryna Sabalenka had to face some uncomfortable questions during her post-match interview.
Sabalenka also pushed back against questioning after her second-round victory when a reporter repeatedly referenced parties and appearances during the buildup to the tournament.
“You guys are like a joke. Parties. Fun. Why would you even say that?” Sabalenka responded. “You literally said that,” she added when the reporter attempted to clarify.
Sabalenka eventually moved on, but the exchange added another layer to the growing criticism surrounding the US Open’s interview segments.
Now, after seeing another embarrassment during Andreeva’s interview, a fan wrote, “That’s so embarrassing for Kondo to tell Mirra Andreeva the wrong draw.”
For Andreeva, however, the night itself should ultimately be remembered for what she accomplished on court. The teenager arrived in New York carrying a very different kind of pressure after winning her maiden Grand Slam title at Roland Garros. Rather than allowing that achievement to become an expectation, she has tried to mentally strip it of its weight.
“Whatever it is, it’s not a Grand Slam,” Andreeva explained about how she has approached the US Open.
Reacting to the moment which nearly overshadowed her win, a fan questioned, “How many times has your announcers messed up on post game interviews??? Bad for the sport”
But coming to the match, Andreeva’s mindset was tested against Potapova. After dropping the opening set, Andreeva became more aggressive and began taking greater control of the rallies. She also gave herself permission to play without fearing the consequences of losing.
“After the first set, I just really tried to say, OK, whatever happens, I’m just going to at least try to go for my shots.”
It worked. She turned the match around and moved into the quarterfinals, becoming the first teenager since Nicole Vaidisova in 2007 to reach Grand Slam quarterfinals on all three surfaces
Other than that post-match moment which drew comments like, “these journalists keep messing up infos it’s embarrassing,” the match itself was a treat to watch for all the fans.
Mirra Andreeva will next face the 2023 champion Coco Gauff in the QF. It’ll be interesting to see who finally manages to seal the deal in that epic duel.