Mirra Andreeva believes she is now in a better position to cope with the pressure put on her shoulders after starting 2026 with a win.

The 19-year-old had lost each of her last three singles matches in 2025, suffering first-round exits in Wuhan and Ningbo following her loss to Sonay Kartal at the China Open.

However, she impressed in her first match at the Brisbane Open, coming from behind to beat local qualifier Olivia Gadecki 4-6 6-1 6-2.

It took Andreeva one hour and 53 minutes to get her victory over the line, facing just two break points – both in the third game of the second set – after losing the opening set.

Andreeva, who broke into the WTA's top 10 in 2025, acknowledged her struggles towards the end of the year but says she knows how to deal with the outside noise better.

"I did feel pressure from a lot of people, especially after I won the two tournaments," she said.

"I felt like people would expect me to win Miami, and then they would expect me to win Madrid and Rome. And I was, you know, that's basically almost not possible.

Turned the tide in Brisbane

Mirra Andreeva comes back from a set down to defeat Gadecki 4-6, 6-1, 6-2!#BrisbaneTennis pic.twitter.com/47GS7OTlyJ

— wta (@WTA) January 7, 2026

"I did feel the pressure that people were expecting me to win basically every tournament that I would play, and that was not easy. But last year I learned a lot how to deal with the pressure, how to not pay attention to what people say, and how to talk about this.

"Because I was talking a lot about how I felt with my team, and now I feel like I know more about this. I have learned a lot from the last year, and if that happens this year, I certainly know what to do with this."

Also through to the round of 16 in Brisbane is Amanda Anisimova.

Her strong second half to 2025, in which she reached the Wimbledon and US Open finals, carried into the new year, with a 64-minute 6-1 6-3 win over Kimberly Birrell.

Her compatriot Jessica Pegula is also through to the next round but had to go the distance to get past Anna Kalinskaya.

In just under two hours, Pegula recorded a 6-2 2-6 6-4, clinching the final set with back-to-back breaks, while also defending two break points on her own serve.