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Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva has put the Australian Open on notice with a straight-sets upset defeat of world number six Ons Jabeur.
- Andreeva triumphed over Jabeur 6-0, 6-2
- She only gave up eight points in the first set
- The 16-year-old is appearing in her first Australian Open main draw
Playing under the roof on Rod Laver Arena due to Melbourne's inclement weather, 16-year-old Andreeva obliterated the three-time major finalist, winning 6-0, 6-2 in 54 minutes.
It was Andreeva's first win over a top-10 player in just her fourth appearance in the main draw of a major.
Andreeva, making her debut in the Australian Open main draw, was relentless and showed no signs of nerves against the former world number two.
She secured three consecutive service breaks to hand Jabeur a "bagel" in the first set, with the Tunisian at one stage revealing a despairing smile as she struggled under her opponent's domination.
The first set was over in just 20 minutes, with Andreeva — who was a finalist in the girls singles at last year's Australian Open — only conceding eight points.
In a moment of desperation, Jabeur — who has been runner-up at Wimbledon in the past two years and also reached the 2022 US Open final – walked over to her player's box at the end of set, seeking some kind of inspiration.
An animated conversation followed with her coaching staff and it worked to some extent, with Jabeur holding serve to win the opening game of the second set, which she celebrated by waving a finger high in the air.
It was a brief reprieve, however, as she dropped her next service game.
Andreeva did face a break point in the fourth game, but she cooly held and then broke Jabeur for the fifth time of the match to lead 4-1.
At 5-2, she served out the match, before receiving a warm embrace from a respectful Jabeur when they met at the net.
"I'm really inspired by Ons, before I started to play on the WTA Tour I always watched her matches," Andreeva said in her on-court interview.
"Now I had a chance to play her and in the first set I showed some amazing tennis. I didn't expect that from myself.
"I'm a bit more mature than I was before. Last year I was 15, this year I've changed a lot and I think you can see that on the court."
While it will go down as a shock result, Andreeva was always going to be a difficult assignment for Jabeur, given her status as the reigning WTA Newcomer of the Year award winner.
She began 2023 ranked 405 in the world but climbed to 46 by the end of the year.
Andreeva slid down one spot by the time the Australian Open got underway, however a third-round appearance or better at Melbourne Park will see her surge up the standings.
She reached the fourth round at Wimbledon last year and could match that performance if she gets past France's Dianne Parry in the last 32.
Parry beat Andreeva's fellow Russian Kamilla Rakhimova 7-5, 6-2 in the second round.