Teenager Andreeva crowned youngest WTA 1000 champion in Dubai

Mirra Andreeva of Russia became the youngest player to win a Women's Tennis Association (WTA) 1000 title when the 17-year-old beat Clara Tauson of Denmark 7-6(1), 6-1 in the Dubai Tennis Championships final in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Saturday.

Andreeva beat three Grand Slam champions – Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic, Iga Swiatek of Poland and Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan - to reach the final.

"I'd set a goal for myself to be in top 10 by the end of the year. Now it's the end of February and I've already made it, so this is something incredible for me," Andreeva said. "I'm just super happy with the way I was playing today. I was very nervous. I think you could see it during the match with all those double faults, some mistakes."

"So I'm just really happy that I could manage and deal with the pressure. And now it just feels amazing... This is something I dreamt of and now my dream came true so I'm just, I'm speechless right now," the Russian teenager added.

Tauson raced into an early lead on the back of a strong service game while Andreeva made two double faults to quickly find herself 2-0 down, but the Russian quickly recovered and began playing her shots, breaking back to level at 2-2.

Both players soon found their range with some heavy hitting, using the full width of the court to enthrall the crowd. With nothing to separate the pair, the opening set went to a tiebreak.

Andreeva has yet to lose a tiebreak this year and she was near-perfect as she won the first six points before taking the opening set when Tauson sent a return long.

Tauson took a medical timeout before the second set and she was frustrated to lose the first game, throwing her racket on the ground. Despite a couple of sublime drop shots from the Danish player, Andreeva grew in confidence to take a 4-1 lead.

Andreeva, who is coached by former Wimbledon champion Conchita Martinez of Spain, then dictated rallies and began grinding down her opponent, firing winners with emphatic overhead smashes that left Tauson deflated as the Russian teenager went 5-1 up.

Andreeva sensed victory as she served for the title and sealed it when another Tauson return went long on her second championship point.

Andreeva also broke new ground as only the second teenager – male or female – to win the Dubai event since its inception in 1993, after Rafael Nadal in 2006.