Seeking a Porsche, Mirra Andreeva’s first hurdle will be her big sister

She recently won two WTA 1000 events, Dubai and Indian Wells — and scored back-to-back victories over the World Nos. 1 and 2 — in the span of one month. So it’s understandable that Mirra Andreeva might be getting a little ahead of herself at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix.

The winner gets 500 PIF WTA Ranking points and over 142,000 Euros — and a sleek, shiny Porsche Macan Turbo car, which is displayed on the court in Stuttgart.

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“The view on the center court is super nice,” World No. 7 Andreeva said Monday as action got underway. “I already thought about which cars I would like to get. But we’re not there yet. I’m just looking around.

“I still don’t have my driver’s license.”

At 17, Andreeva is the youngest of three teenagers in the Hologic WTA Tour Top 100 (and the highest-ranked by far). She turns 18 in late April in Madrid, where she burst into prominence two years ago. Andreeva’s one of six Top 10 players in this elite field, so she’s got some work ahead of her.

And there could be some heavy lifting as soon as Wednesday’s first-round match, against an opponent she’s never beaten: her sister Erika.

In an unlikely chain of events, Erika was placed in the main draw opposite her sister after losing her second qualifying match in straight sets to Aliaksandra Sasnovich. She became a lucky loser when Marta Kostyuk withdrew with an abdominal injury. Previously, Kostyuk had gotten direct entry into the main draw when Paula Badosa withdrew with a lingering back injury.

Erika, aged 20 and ranked No. 97, is three years older than Mirra.

When Mirra met the media on Monday, the matchup had not yet been confirmed.

“I know that there is a chance that I might play my sister again,” she said. “But we’re going to take it professionally because we don’t have any other choice. If it’s going to be like this, then we’re just going to go on court and play as any other match.

“We’re going to face each other, and if it happens, probably it’s going to be a great and entertaining match.”

The Andreeva sisters have played only once before at the WTA Tour level: Erika was a 6-3, 6-1 winner last fall in the second round at Wuhan. Mirra led 3-1 in the first set, then lost nine straight games, and 11 of the last 12.

It was reminiscent of the early matches between Venus and Serena Williams, with both sisters clearly conflicted.

“It was tough for both of us,” Erika said afterward. “First experience, and both of us were happy it happened at a big tournament. But I’m not sure we enjoyed it.”

Although they hadn’t even played a practice match in more than five years, Erika was exceedingly familiar with her sister’s all-court game.

“It’s true, because we played each other in childhood a lot,” Erika said. “I know where she will most possibly go, and she as well. Sometimes during the rally I was like, `Normally I go there, but I know that she knows that I go there,’ and I changed my decision.”

Also a lucky loser that week in Wuhan, Erika eventually lost to Jasmine Paolini in the Round of 16.

At the 2024 US Open, the two sisters talked about their sibling rivalry. Growing up, not surprisingly, Erika always had the upper hand.

“But, honestly, Mirra was so small,” Erika explained in Flushing Meadows last year. “The time that we played was very long ago. Also, when you are that young, the age difference matters more.”

So, Mirra was asked, when did she start beating her older sister?

“I actually haven’t,” Mirra said, laughing. “We practiced a lot when we were younger and of course she would always beat me like 6-1 or 6-2. Maybe only 6-3 if I played good or she had a bad day.”

Mirra is now a Top 10 player, and Erika is Top 100, starting to make her own headlines. This is the first time for both of them in Stuttgart.

On Monday, Mirra said her recent success is due to a new-found balance.

“I just try to go on court and enjoy every moment, to kind of have fun, but at the same time take it seriously,” she said. “I think that lately I found that balance to not really be depressed or to worry too much on the court, but also sometimes take it easy and let it go. I think me finding that balance helped me a lot these couple of months.”

Mirra — and Erika — will have to find that balance when sisters become opponents on Wednesday.