Shy Mirra Andreeva avoids idol Andy Murray even as Wimbledon confidence grows

FLASHBACK: Andreeva revealed her admiration for Murray after her Mutua Madrid Open breakthrough earlier this spring.

Much as Mirra Andreeva grows in grass-court confidence, some things may never change for the Russian teenager as she updates the media on whether she’s finally had a chance to chat up idol Andy Murray.

“I met Andy Murray here,” she revealed after outlasting an injured Barbora Krejcikova on Thursday. “But I'm too shy to talk to him. When I see him, I try to leave the facility super quick just to not to talk to him because I'm super shy!”

Andreeva has nonetheless grown bolder on the court, reaching her second straight Grand Slam third round, having already made a splash on the terre battue, and despite her limited experience with the surface, the 16-year-old has quickly gotten comfortable on grass.

“I started to practice at Raynes Park,” she explained in her post-match press conference. “My coach, he was telling me that there would be a lot of bad bounces.

“Honestly, when I was playing there, I didn't even have one bad bounce. It was like super perfect. Honestly, I was waiting for the bad bounces. It's not a lot. I mean, not as on clay court.”

And according to Andreeva, who will draw natural comparisons to a young Maria Sharapova, that’s not the only way in which Wimbledon differs from Roland Garros.

I've been there in my first day. I made a lot of pictures right away. I have like 15 pictures in my phone. The atmosphere is great. Mirra Andreeva on Wimbledon's Centre Court

“Compared to French Open, it's like wow, super beautiful here,” she exclaimed. “It's super traditional. French Open is, like, I don't know, kind of simple, and here everything is like the white clothes, the grass, the strawberries, of course.

“I don't know. The Wimbledon, I like it much better so far.”

Wimbledon has returned the affection, as have the Netflix cameras, who have been seen following the youngster around the grounds of SW19 to film a second season of Break Point.

“They're super nice people. So far, I didn't notice something bad in them. If you don't want to film something today, they're super cool with it.

“For example, yesterday I was feeling super nervous. In the warm-up I felt a little bit uncomfortable, little bit stressed, so we told them that maybe it's not a good time for this. They were super cool with it. They just left. They gave me some space.”

The spotlight will only get brighter on Andreeva as she prepares to play countrywoman Anastasia Potapova for a first-ever trip to a Grand Slam second week, and she may yet go from awestruck fan to stadium headliner.

“I've been there in my first day,” she said of Centre Court. “I made a lot of pictures right away. I have like 15 pictures in my phone. The atmosphere is great.”

Might Murray be in the crowd when she makes her debut?