Footage of Mirra Andreeva saluting the crowd after her second-round win at the Australian Open has split tennis fans, with many believing she said ‘f*** you all’ as she waved to spectators.
The 18-year-old Russian blitzed Greece’s Maria Sakkari 6-0, 6-4 on Wednesday night as she continues to stamp herself as one of the most talented young stars in the sport.
She applauded the crowd after match point and a clip of that moment is going viral on X, with some fans believing she swore, while others are convinced she actually said ‘thank you all’.
‘Did she say what I’m thinking she said?’ the caption on the post read.
There were more than 250 comments, slightly skewed in favour of ‘thank you all’ – but some viewers were adamant Andreeva insulted the crowd.
‘Mirra fan for life if she said it!’ one wrote.
Mirra Andreeva is pictured saluting the crowd at the Australian Open on Wednesday night. Many fans believe she told spectators ‘f*** you all’, while others are adamant she said ‘thank you all’
Some fans who believe Andreeva dropped the F-bomb applauded her for it
‘Now I can’t unsee it,’ another commented.
‘100% she said it!’ wrote another.
Some fans speculated that Andreeva dropped the F-bomb after Sakkari received loud support from Greek fans during the clash.
Melbourne has the largest Greek population outside of Greece and stars like Stefanos Tsitsipas have enjoyed heavy backing at the Open.
‘She just said in the [post-match] interview the Greece fans were aggressive, soooo… I guess yea,’ one commenter wrote.
Andreeva brought up the Greek fans in her post-match interview.
‘Obviously they were loud. They were supporting a lot for Maria,’ she said.
‘When she won those three games in a row, I think she won 11 or 12 points in a row, they really went for it.
Andreeva’s opponent Maria Sakkari (pictured left) got some very vocal support from Greek fans at Melbourne Park
After the match, Andreeva admitted she had to try hard to prevent the crowd from putting her off her game
‘I tried not to focus on the crowd. I really tried to keep all my focus into the match.
‘Now as I’m learning that this is going to happen in almost every tournament.
‘There are going to be a lot of fans cheering for one or the other player, it’s something that I have to learn how to deal with.’
Andreeva, who is seeded eighth for the Open, will now face Elena-Gabriela Ruse in the third round at Melbourne Park.
The teen sensation made it to the fourth round of the tournament in 2024 and 2025, in addition to making the semis at the French Open in 2024.
Andreeva also won silver in the women’s doubles at the Paris Olympics.
