Wimbledon royalty are in the stands today, and through all the big wins there seems to be one commonality in the speeches, i.e., shout-outs to Roger Federer and his wife, Mirka. First it was Novak Djokovic who beat Alex De Minaur to reach his 16th Wimbledon quarterfinal, who shared an emotional moment with his peer who looked on from the stands, saying, “It’s probably the first time he’s [Federer] watched me, and I won the match.” Then it was the young Mirra Andreeva from Russia who was in disbelief to see Federer in the stands and made it a point to tell Mirka she thought she looked pretty in her post-match speech after she beat Emma Navarro 6-2, 6-3.

It was quite a sight, Mirra Andreeva taking on Emma Navarro, who is six years her senior, and knocking it out of the park. What’s sort of surreal about the whole thing is that Andreeva is exactly the same age as Maria Sharapova was when she made it to the quarterfinalsin 2005, i.e., 18 years old and 62 days at the start of the tournament.

It’s shocking enough for the fans, but it seemed shocking too for Andreeva, who visibly didn’t really clock her win till she looked up at the stands and saw her team cheering. Coach Conchita Martinez enjoyed the lighthearted moment, laughing away as the young athlete finally realized she had just made it into the Wimbledon semi-finals. Her joyous spirit and love for the game shone through in her post-match interview, and clearly the future is wide open for Mirra Andreeva, the current world No. 7!

Who is Mirra Andreeva, the youngest woman since 2007 to reach the quarter finals?

Of course, Andreeva’s age very pointedly harks back to memories of 2004, when a young Maria Sharapova lifted the Venus Rosewater Dish after beating two-time defending champion Serena Williams. Sharapova, who was seeded 13 at the time, was not the favorite to win but managed to despite all odds, and the coincidence of the two Russian stars’ ages has fans wondering if Andreeva can pull off a similar feat.

Hey, anything is possible, but this particular thing might be tough considering Aryna Sabalenka has been practicing with Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner on the side in preparation for the rest of the tournament.

Regardless, Mirra Andreeva’s story is surely the start of something great. To be 18 years and 62 days old and heading into the Wimbledon quarter finals with absolute legends, that in itself is a victory worth celebrating, even if she’s celebrating it a few seconds late!