Mirra Andreeva broke down in tears during an emotional runner-up speech at the Madrid Open, and apologised for crying. The No. 9 seed couldn’t bear to face her team after suffering a 6-3 7-5 defeat to Marta Kostyuk in Sunday’s final and started sobbing when she attempted to thank them during the trophy presentation.

Andreeva cried into a towel on her bench immediately after the match, and still looked heartbroken as she addressed the crowd during her speech. She was able to get through it unscathed, congratulating Kostyuk and thanking the fans and tournament staff, but struggled as soon as she mentioned her own camp.

“And of course, thanks to my team for always being there for me,” Andreeva said at the end of her speech as her voice cracked, and she bowed her head and cried. Through sobs, the 19-year-old apologised and revealed that she didn’t want to shed any tears.

“I’m sorry. I promised myself I’m not going to cry. I’m sorry,” she added. Andreeva then held up her runner-up plate so she didn’t have to look at coach Conchita Martinez and the rest of her team, and was able to finish her speech.

“I’m just not gonna look at you, because it’s easier like this,” she said. “Thanks to my team for always being there for me, supporting me all of the time, when it’s easy and when it’s hard.

“I know it’s sometimes maybe not easy to work with me, but I really appreciate all of your support and everything you do for me, so thank you so much.”

Andreeva and Kostyuk both came into the Madrid Open final full of form, already winning titles on the clay this season – Andreeva in Linz and Kostyuk in Rouen. But it was the Ukrainian, who had never even reached a WTA 1000 final before, who came out of the gates swinging.

Kostyuk saved two set points on her serve, shutting the door on a potential Andreeva comeback and winning the biggest title of her career. And the ninth seed was full of praise for her opponent after the match, despite her disappointment.

“First of all, of course, I would like to congratulate Marta and her team for an amazing win today and for how your clay season is going so far as well,” Andreeva said. “You won two tournaments in a row, so you’re playing very well, so congrats for the win today as well.”

The pair didn’t shake hands at the conclusion of the match, as Ukrainian star Kostyuk has not shaken hands with any of her Russian or Belarusian colleagues since the war in Ukraine broke out. But Kostyuk still applauded Andreeva as she took to the stage to collect her runner-up plate.