Andreeva ended the Middle East Swing with a breakthrough week in Dubai, scoring back-to-back wins over Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina en route to her first WTA 1000 title, heading to Indian Wells for only the second time in her young career.
Losing in the first round in her 2024 debut, the teenager was already guaranteed a career-best finish in the California desert thanks to an opening-round bye, but clearly aspires to another deep run despite a frustrating evening on court against Gracheva.
Andreeva appeared on course for a quick win as she kicked off Day 3’s evening session on the second-biggest court at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, but quickly lost four straight games after taking a big lead in the opening set.
She shook off the hiccup to ultimately take the set in under an hour, but found herself at an even bigger deficit when Gracheva, a Top 40 player as recently as last year, raced out to a double-break advantage in the second.
