Mirra Andreeva was blatantly criticized by Russian former World No. 1 Yevgeny Kafelnikov following the shocking end of her women’s singles title defense at the 2026 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. Andreeva was ousted from the WTA 1000 tournament of the prestigious annual hardcourt event in the Californian desert by doubles specialist Katerina Siniakova, with the Czech registering a 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-3 win.
Kafelnikov, a two-time singles Major champion in his prime, spoke to Championat in the aftermath of the stunning result. The 52-year-old, who has often been critical of his young compatriot in the past over her form, once again brought up the subject, opining that the 18-year-old is stagnating instead of progressing.
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“Who isn’t wondering about Mirra’s form? Her current form isn’t only being questioned by those who know nothing about tennis. For them, Mirra’s game doesn’t raise any questions, but for everyone else, myself included, it does,” Kafelnikov said.
“She’s not progressing, and that’s the most obvious thing. She’s stagnating,” he added. (translated from Russian)
It wasn’t just Mirra Andreeva’s performance on the day that was subpar. Her behavior too, was unsportsmanlike on multiple occasions throughout the contest, as she smashed rackets, physically harmed herself, fought with her team and in the end, left the court seemingly hurling abuses at the crowd. Later, the teenager offered an explanation about her on-court behavior.
“I’m not proud” – Mirra Andreeva on wild outburst after Indian Wells exit
Following the calamitous end of her Indian Wells title defense, Mirra Andreeva opened up about her aggressive gestures and seemingly abusive words to the crowd. The teenager, expressing remorse over her behavior, said:
“Well, of course I can say that there were a lot of emotions that I was going through after the loss. But of course I’m not really proud of how I managed it. I’m not really proud of how I handled it in the end.”
She also claimed that her outburst as she was making her way off of the court was directed primarily at herself, adding:
“It was to myself, to everyone, basically. I mean, after the loss, I just get very angry, so I say those things sometimes to myself. I mean, first to myself, of course, but then, yeah, it was just anger coming out, just a lot of emotions. Not really towards anyone.”
Mirra Andreeva’s failure to defend her titles in Dubai and Indian Wells threatens her status as a WTA top 10 player. She currently sits at No. 10 in the live rankings.
Edited by Sudipto Pati
