World No. 13 Daria Kasatkina has offered a tongue-in-cheek response to a former tennis player’s suggestion that players shouldn’t discuss their scheduling issues.
The Russian has made a decent start to the hardcourt season, garnering six wins out of eight matches and a quarterfinal appearance at the National Bank Open in Montreal. She is currently competing at the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati.
With a touch of irony, Kasatkina responded to the former tennis professional’s advice for players to avoid raising concerns about their schedules. She cheekily asked the tennis enthusiast to attend work at 3 a.m.
“See you at work at 3am, and no whining pls,” Daria Kasatkina said.
Numerous players competing on both the WTA and ATP circuits have expressed their grievances concerning the demanding schedule this year.
Notable figures like World No. 1 Iga Swiatek, Elena Rybakina, and experienced Belarusian player Victoria Azarenka have voiced their concerns, urging the WTA to address the issue and facilitate players’ recovery prioritization.
While Rybakina found herself physically drained after concluding a match at the early hour of 3 a.m., Azarenka conveyed her disappointment in her role within the players council.
She lamented the challenge of effecting positive changes for their collective benefit. The 34-year-old emphasized the uniqueness of tennis, where players often lack clarity about their match timings, a distinct aspect not witnessed in other sports around the world.
“I absolutely lost it yesterday because we work so hard in the Players Council and I just felt so frustrated, like I’m not making a difference and I put a lot of time, a lot of effort.. I try to be reasonable, I try to compromise, I try to create ideas and we are moving at the slowest pace to get things done,” she continued.
“This is the only sport in the world where you don’t know when you’re going to play.. I look at it as a player, and it’s ridiculous. I look at it as a fan, and I don’t know which matches I’m going to go watch because I have no clue, unless you’re very fanatical, but we need to appeal to a bigger crowd to watch our sport,” Victoria Azarenka said.
Daria Kasatkina to square off against Aryna Sabalenka in R3 of the Western and Southern Open
World No. 13 Daria Kasatkina will take on World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka in the third round of the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati.
Sabalenka leads the head-to-head against Kasatkina 3-2 and defeated the Russian most recently at the 2022 Silicon Valley Classic. She will be hoping to add to her tally and maintain her record.
While Daria Kasatkina got the better of lucky loser Varvara Gravecha in the second round, Sabalenka outclassed American qualifier Ann Li in an absorbing three-set contest. The Belarusian defeated Li in two hours and three minutes, 7-5, 2-6, 6-4.
Both players will be determined to maintain their win streak and continue to build momentum ahead of the US Open Championships. Fans can expect a close encounter in the third round of the Western and Southern Open.
The winner of this tie will take on either fifth seed Ons Jabeur or Donna Vekic in the quarterfinals.
