Victoria Mboko enjoyed a strong start to her Indian Wells debut with an opening win against Kimberly Birrell.
The Canadian, seeded 10th at the WTA 1000 competition, defeated the Australian in straight sets, 6-4, 7-6, to advance to the third round.
As well as embarking on her first singles campaign in ‘Tennis Paradise’, Mboko is competing in doubles alongside fellow teenage sensation Mirra Andreeva.
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The two young stars won their first match against the duo of Zhang Shuai and Elise Mertens in three sets, 6-4, 4-6, 10-8.
Amid their pursuit of the title together, Mboko shared what her relationship is like with Andreeva currently.
Victoria Mboko says she does not see Mirra Andreeva as a rival
Speaking in her post-match press conference after defeating Birrell in singles, Mboko said of Andreeva: “I feel like I don’t really see her that much as a rival.
“She’s just a friend that is playing the same level as me, and I feel like we both root for each other and are always supporting each other.
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“It’s nice to have, I guess, players around your age that you grew up playing with at this level, because you’ve known them for such a long time and you can kind of relate to them in a sense.
“Yeah, I mean, I hope in the future we can both keep competing against each other and push each other to do better. She’s a really nice girl, and I always hope the best for her.”
Victoria Mboko reveals how her partnership with Mirra Andreeva came about
Asked how the partnership with Andreeva was formed, Mboko replied: “Yeah, it kind of just came really randomly.
“I wasn’t actually planning on playing doubles here, but she asked me pretty last minute. I was, like, sure, why not? Get some extra matches in.
“I’m sure it will be fun. She’s a great doubles player and has some really great doubles results.
“I’m also kind of just starting out and trying to find my footing in doubles, and just trying to play as many matches as I can whenever I can. Yeah, we’ll see.”
Mboko’s next singles opponent in Indian Wells comes in the form of Anna Kalinskaya.
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