Medical time-outs in tennis are always debatable, with the players hardly ever convinced that their opponent’s injury was bad enough for a break to be sought mid-match. Amanda Anisimova recently took a medical timeout during her R32 clash against Mirra Andreeva at the Miami Open, unsurprisingly igniting a heated exchange between the two with Andreeva clearly being very upset about the break. But now, Anisimova has broken her silence, shedding light on her injury and even providing proof, while subtly calling out her Russian opponent. What exactly has the American youngster said?

The drama unfolded in the third set of the match when Anisimova, leading 3-1, unexpectedly stopped play to call for a medical timeout when Andreeva serving at 40-40. That move caught everyone off guard, as ATP and ITF regulations prohibit mid-game medical stoppages unless there is active bleeding from the players’ end. According to the rules, non-bleeding blisters do not qualify as an emergency, meaning Anisimova should have waited for a changeover or set break before requesting the treatment.

The disruption visibly agitated Andreeva, who immediately sought clarification from both the chair umpire and the match supervisor. She protested that the break came at a critical moment when she was fighting to stay in the match in the third set. “She can take the physio when she has to serve. This, you know that, we all know,” Mirra said while talking to the chair umpire. But the umpire permitted the MTO, stating, “Just listen to me, she has a right. The physio will have a look and she will determine if it’s now or later,” Mirra immediately added, “Of course, she has a right and of course, she’s going to do it right now. We all know why.”

And, right after the match, Anisimova defended her decision, justifying why she needed the medical intervention at that moment. The 23-year-old American took to Instagram to share a carousel of match highlights on her stories. Among them was a short yet telling video of the wounded finger of her right hand, visibly bruised and wrapped. But what truly caught everyone’s attention was the caption: “We all know why” at 3-1 up was a good one coming from the 1-2 first set medical.” But why exactly did she reference the first set? 

Well, Andreeva herself took a medical timeout while trailing 2-1 in the first set, receiving extensive treatment for her abdominal area. However, despite losing the opener in a tight 7-6 (7-5) battle, she stormed back to claim the 2nd set 6-2. Anisimova regained control in the decider though, sealing a hard-fought 6-3 victory after nearly three hours on court.

But the drama didn’t end there! Following her defeat, Andreeva found herself at the center of social media backlash, with fans flooding her comments with criticism. In response, the young Russian shared screenshots of the hate messages, reigniting discussions.

“This is what you get” —Mirra Andreeva faces hate comments after her Miami loss

Just last month, Mirra Andreeva opened up about a terrifying experience from her early career, recalling a chilling message she received at just 14: “Look around because I’m going to find you and I’m going to cut your arms,” she shared this shocking story as Brit ace Emma Raducanu faced a security scare in Dubai Open, shedding light on the dark side of tennis fandom.

Fast forward to the Miami Open, and the Russian teen, who had been riding a red-hot 13-match winning streak, clinching back-to-back WTA 1000 titles in Dubai as well as Indian Wells, suffered her first loss in weeks. It was her first stumble since breaking into the WTA top 10.

But the real storm followed after the match. Andreeva took to her IG stories, sharing a screenshot of her IG notification page flooded with hateful messages from fans. With a pointed caption, she wrote: “And this is what you get when you lose one match.” The story has since been deleted, but renowned tennis journalist Jose Morgado shared a screenshot of it on X.

Well, this mirrors the brutal reality of professional sports, where success is celebrated but a single defeat can trigger relentless online criticism and hatred. Mirra Andreeva’s Sunshine Double dream has ended, but with her fearless style of tennis, it’s only a matter of time before she bounces back!