After reaching the China Open quarter-finals Mirra Andreeva has equalled an achievement by Maria Sharapova 20 years ago.
The 17-year-old is continuing her steady rise up the WTA rankings after reaching her sixth quarter-final of the campaign.
She eased past Magda Linette in straight sets to reach the last eight in the Chinese capital for the first time in her career.
The result has seen her break new ground at the China Open and is aiming for the second title of her career in Beijing.
What WTA record does Mirra Andreeva now share with Maria Sharapova?
After defeating Linette 6-1, 6-3, Andreeva joined Maria Sharapova as the youngest player to reach the China Open quarter-finals.
However, the most striking difference is that Andreeva achieved this at 17 years and 156 days old, the exact same age as Sharapova, including the number of days.
In 2004, the inaugural edition of the China Open, Sharapova, who won the Wimbledon title earlier that year, was seeded third.
She reached the quarter-finals where she defeated Jelena Janković, who retired from their match while trailing 2-5.
Sharapova lost her semi-final contest to Svetlana Kuznetsova, who was defeated by Serena Williams in the final.
What has Maria Sharapova said about Mirra Andreeva?
Sharapova has been watching the progress of Andreeva, who claimed her first WTA Tour title at the Iasi Open in July.
In May Sharapova appeared in a WTA Tour video on Instagram and praised Andreeva while predicting that she will have a strong season.
“This is a tough one. I want to say Mirra Andreeva will have a phenomenal year,” the five-time Grand Slam champion said.
“I followed a little bit of her matches in 23’ and I think she has a strong attitude [and] she has the game to back it up.
“Genuinely, just like her approach and her sensibility in the game. And I think she has a very bright future ahead of her.”
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